Nutritional evaluation of animal feed infested with Aleuroglyphus ovatus and Tyrophaghus putrescentiae

Compound feed for animals are produced in the feed industry based on grains, seed oil, by-products of animal origin, which are sources of carbohydrates, fats, proteins, and are attractive foods to species which infest them, causing changes in energy, feed nutrition composition, and in their hygienic-sanitary quality. The objective of this study was to evaluate the nutritional profile of feeds infested with Aleuroglyphus ovatus and Tyrophaghus putrescentiae, and identify the preference of these mites for raw materials used to prepare the feeds. Mitefauna were evaluated in poultry, cattle, and pork feeds. In the feeding preference test, species were offered the possibility to choose between rice (R), soybean (S) and wheat bran (W), meat meal (M), milled maize (C), and animal feed colonizer fungi (F). To evaluate the nutritional profile of feeds with A. ovatus and T. putrescentiae, the contents of either extract (fat), crude fiber, ash, crude protein, riboflavin, thiamine, and moisture, as well as the presence of fungi and yeasts, were evaluated. The predominant and most abundant species was T. putrescentiae (60%), followed by Cheyletus malaccensis (20%) and A. ovatus (8%). Aleuroglyphus ovatus preferred M, C and R, whereas T. putrescentiae preferred M, F, and R. Aleuroglyphus ovatus reduced fat content by 72%, and protein by 3.93%. Ash increased by 28.35% and 40.56%, while T. putrescentiae decreased fat by 35.11%, protein by 6.06%, and moisture by 13.53%. Tyrophaghus putrescentiae increased the concentration of crude fiber by 13.40% and caused changes in vitamins at 60 days, increasing thiamine concentration by 38.57% and reducing riboflavin by 50%.