Anaticola crassicornis (Phthiraptera: Ischnocera: Philopteridae) on wild geese from Pakistan

Twenty-eight geese (Anser anser, A. albifrons and A. indicus) from different localities around Karachi, Pakistan, were examined for lice. One species of chewing louse, Anaticola crassicornis (Scopoli), was found on every bird examined. This is the first record of this louse species from members of Anser. In the light of past confusion, the authors redescribe A. crassicornis in detail, with special reference to its genitalia, and compare it with A. anseris. Despite the louse not appearing on ducks sampled at the same time as the geese, we hypothesize that A. crassicornis is likely to have passed to the geese as a result of recent host switching from an unidentified anatid host.