A new species of Lagaropsylla. Jordan & Rothschild, 1921 from Madagascar(Insecta, Siphonaptera, Ischnopsyllidae).

This paper describes a new species of the genus Lagaropsylla Jordan & Rothschild, 1921, collected in the Makay Mountains in Madagascar, on the bat Otomops madagascariensis Dorst, 1953. Male differs from L. obliqua Smit, 1957 and L. hoogstraali Smit, 1957 by the hamulus shape, which is markedly higher than large, exhibiting a small “tooth” backwards of the apex; and differs from L. consularis Smit, 1957 by the preoral tuber, the pronotal comb and the ductus ejaculatorius shapes. Female has a sclerite at the ductus bursae base and differs from L. consularis by the preoral tuber shape and rather short spines on the comb. The new species' discovery is explained, in one hand, by the rarity of the host, and, in the other hand, by the lack of previous bats and ectoparasites studies in the remote Makay Mountains. A new parasite-host association between Araeopsylla martialis (Rothschild, 1903) and O. madagascariensis is mentioned.