Captive individuals of endangered Philippine raptors maintain native feather mites (Acariformes: Pterolichoidea) species.

Endangered species of hosts are coupled with endangered species of parasites, which share the risk of co-extinction. Conservation efforts sometimes include breeding of rare species in captivity. Data on parasites of captive populations of endangered species is scarce and the ability of small numbers of captive host individuals to support the biodiversity of native parasites is limited. Examination of ectosymbionts of the critically endangered Philippine eagles and the endangered Mindanao Hawk-Eagle kept at the Philippine Eagle Center, Philippines, revealed three feather mite species despite regular treatment with insecticide powder. No other ectosymbiont taxa were detected. Studies in morphology and molecular phylogeny of these feather mites based on mitochondrial and nuclear DNA markers indicate that species found were typical for Accipitridae. Three new pterolichoid feather mite species (Acari: Pterolichoidea) were described from two species of eagles (Accipitriformes: Accipitridae) endemic to the Philippines: sp. n. (Gabuciniidae) and sp. n. (Pterolichidae) from the Great Philippine Eagle Ogilvie-Grant, 1896, and sp. n. (Kramerellidae) from the Mindanao Hawk-Eagle Gould, 1863. The presence of on supports the recent finding that the Great Philippine Eagle belongs to the lineage of serpent eagles (Circaetinae) rather than to the Harpy and other eagles.