ASRB NET and ARS / SMS / STO (Agricultural Scientists Recruitment Board) · India · Agricultural Scientists Recruitment Board
Original practice questions written to the published syllabus · not past papersFlies, mosquitoes, midges, lice, fleas, ticks and mites: the damage they do themselves and the diseases they carry, and the ectoparasiticides used against them.
In the exams: ICAR AICE-JRF core group 06; ICAR AIEEA-PG 13 (Parasitology)
How our questions for ASRB NET and ARS / SMS / STO spread across the units of Veterinary Entomology & Acarology. Difficulty: 17 easy, 42 medium, 15 hard.
| Ectoparasiticides and resistance | 13 | |
| Culicoides midges | 8 | |
| Hard ticks | 7 | |
| Myiasis | 7 | |
| Vectors of babesiosis and theileriosis | 7 | |
| Vectors of bluetongue and lumpy skin disease | 7 | |
| Flies | 6 | |
| Mosquitoes | 6 | |
| Fleas | 4 | |
| Soft ticks | 4 | |
| Lice | 3 | |
| Mange mites | 2 |
Choose an answer, then open the working. Each explanation says why the right answer is right and why the others are not.
Culicoides biting midges belong to the family:
C. Ceratopogonidae
Culicoides are ceratopogonids. Culicidae are mosquitoes, Simuliidae blackflies and Psychodidae include the phlebotomine sandflies, all Nematocera but different families.
Further reading: Taylor, Coop & Wall, Veterinary Parasitology (4th ed.)
Under a hand lens, a louse with a head narrower than its thorax and piercing mouthparts is a:
C. Sucking louse (Anoplura)
Sucking lice have a narrow head, narrower than the thorax; chewing lice have a broad head wider than the thorax. Both Ischnocera and Amblycera are chewing lice.
Further reading: Taylor, Coop & Wall, Veterinary Parasitology (4th ed.)
In which hard tick genus does the anal groove curve in front of the anus?
A. Ixodes
Ixodes is the only genus of the Prostriata, with the anal groove anterior to the anus. All other genera (Metastriata) have it posterior or absent.
Further reading: Taylor, Coop & Wall, Veterinary Parasitology (4th ed.)
A hard tick has short palps, a hexagonal basis capituli, no festoons and is inornate. It belongs to:
B. Rhipicephalus (Boophilus)
Boophilus ticks have very short palps, a hexagonal basis capituli and no festoons. Rhipicephalus sensu stricto also has a hexagonal basis but has festoons; Dermacentor has a rectangular basis and is ornate; Amblyomma has long palps.
Further reading: Taylor, Coop & Wall, Veterinary Parasitology (4th ed.)
A mite with an oval body, long legs and long jointed pedicels ending in trumpet-shaped suckers is:
D. Psoroptes
Long, jointed (three-segmented) pedicels with trumpet suckers identify Psoroptes. Sarcoptes has long unjointed pedicels, Chorioptes short unjointed pedicels with cup suckers, and Demodex is cigar-shaped with stubby legs.
Further reading: Taylor, Coop & Wall, Veterinary Parasitology (4th ed.)
Babesia in one-host Boophilus ticks must pass to the next tick generation by:
A. Transovarial transmission
Because a one-host tick never changes host, a Babesia acquired by the engorging female can reach a new host only through her eggs. Transstadial passage alone would leave the parasite on the same animal.
Further reading: Taylor, Coop & Wall, Veterinary Parasitology (4th ed.)
Tropical theileriosis (Theileria annulata) of crossbred cattle in India is transmitted mainly by:
B. Hyalomma anatolicum
H. anatolicum is the main vector of T. annulata. R. appendiculatus transmits T. parva in Africa, and H. longicornis transmits T. orientalis.
Further reading: Taylor, Coop & Wall, Veterinary Parasitology (4th ed.)
Which mechanism of acaricide resistance is metabolic rather than target-site?
C. Increased activity of cytochrome P450 monooxygenases
Metabolic resistance increases detoxifying enzymes such as P450s, esterases and glutathione S-transferases. The other three are target-site mutations.
Further reading: Taylor, Coop & Wall, Veterinary Parasitology (4th ed.)
Residues of macrocyclic lactones excreted in cattle dung are an environmental concern mainly because they:
C. Harm dung beetles and other dung fauna, slowing breakdown of dung pats
Macrocyclic lactone residues are toxic to dung-breeding insects, including beneficial dung beetles that also help control horn flies. The other options are not recognised effects.
Further reading: Taylor, Coop & Wall, Veterinary Parasitology (4th ed.)
The larvae of Hypoderma lineatum spend the winter resting stage in the:
D. Submucosa of the oesophagus
H. lineatum rests in the oesophageal submucosa, H. bovis in the spinal canal. Frontal sinuses are the site of Oestrus ovis and the stomach of Gasterophilus.
Further reading: Taylor, Coop & Wall, Veterinary Parasitology (4th ed.)
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