Bisonicola sedecimdecembrii (Phthiraptera: Trichodectidae) from European bison – redescription of adults and description of juvenile stages

Bisonicola sedecimdecembrii is a specific parasite of the genus Bison . The European bison became completely extinct in natural conditions at the beginning of the 20 th century, and the currently existing wild populations are a result of successful restitution and reintroduction. Only three European bison-specific parasites have survived until now, including the chewing louse B. sedecimdecembrii , described from the female by Eichler (1946). This paper redescribes the adults and describes the juvenile stages for the first time, based on the analysis of 1,203 specimens of B. sedecimdecembrii from 115 bison from Poland.