Ixodid Ticks (Acari, Ixodidae) in Urban Landscapes. A review

Abstract This study presents the results of content analysis of published works on ixodid ticks in urban conditions in order to determine the species diversity, the vectors of research interests at various stages. Information about ticks in the cities up to the 1980s is incidental, to the point of exclusive, after this point there is targeted research in urban landscapes. There are 106 or 15 % of hard ticks of the world fauna registered in the urban territory, 26 species or 3.7 % being the most abundant. Of the urban hard tick species, 23 (88.5 %) can attack humans, and 12 species are the most adapted to the urban landscape: Ixodes ricinus, I. persulcatus, Dermacentor reticulatus, D. marginatus, I. pavlovskyi, I. scapularis (dammini), Amblyomma cajennense, Haemaphysalis longicornis, I. hexagonus, Hyalomma marginatum, Am. americanum, and Rhipicephalus sanguineus. It was determined that the most likely causes of the growing number of publications on ixodids urban landscapes are: global accelerating urbanization, the development of recreational areas, the development of green tourism, the growth of the prestige of outdoor recreation, the creation of new, especially of the landscape parks and a tendency to preserve the native landscape in the cities, a significant increase in the density of populations of common species of hard ticks adapted to living in urban environment. The vectors of further work in urban landscapes will be directed to exact planning of monitoring studies of ixodids and associated tick-borne infections.

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Species Diversity and Seasonal Distribution of Hard Ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) Infesting Mammalian Hosts in Various Districts of Riyadh Province, Saudi Arabia

Journal of Medical Entomology ◽

10.1093/jme/tjz036 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 56 (4) ◽

pp. 1027-1032 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

Abdullah D Alanazi ◽

Hamdan I Al-Mohammed ◽

Mohamed S Alyousif ◽

Ashraf E Said ◽

Bashir Salim ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Animal Health ◽

Mammalian Species ◽

Rhipicephalus Sanguineus ◽

Common Species ◽

Hard Tick ◽

Wild Mammals ◽

Hard Ticks ◽

Blood Sucking ◽

And Control

Abstract Hard ticks are among the most important blood sucking arthropods that transmit pathogens to humans and animals. This study was designed to determine prevalence, mapping, geographical distribution, and seasonal activity of hard tick species infesting the most common domestic and wild mammals in various districts of Riyadh Province, Saudi Arabia, during the period January to December 2017. In total, 10,832 adult hard ticks were collected from the bodies of 8,435 animals belonging to 18 different mammalian species. The ticks were preserved in 70% alcohol and microscopy was used to identify species. Two genera, Hyalomma and Rhipicephalus, were identified, comprising 10 species of hard ticks, with Hyalomma comprising 68.3% and Rhipicephalus comprising 31.7% of species. The most common species on domestic mammalian hosts was Hyalomma dromedarii (Koch 1844) (39.9%) followed by Rhipicephalus turanicus (Pomerantsev, Matikashvili & Lotosky 1936) (34.9%), whereas on wild mammalian hosts Rhipicephalus sanguineus (Latreille 1806) was by far the most prevalent species (83.0%). However, ticks were most abundant during May through July (36.0%) in the studied areas, and tick intensity and abundance differed among seasons. Our results provide information for human and animal health service managers, as well as governmental authorities, to gain a better understanding of hard ticks infesting mammalian hosts in Riyadh Province, Saudi Arabia, which can help improve prevention and control of tick-borne diseases, especially during outbreaks.

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Molecular Assay on Detection of Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) Virus in Ixodid Ticks Collected from Livestock in Slaughterhouse from South of Iran

Journal of Arthropod-Borne Diseases ◽

10.18502/jad.v14i3.4562 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Mostafa Salehi-Vaziri ◽

Hassan Vatandoos ◽

Alireza Sanei-Dehkordi ◽

Mehdi Fazlalipour ◽

Mohammad Hassan Pouriayevali ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Tick Infestation ◽

Hemorrhagic Fever ◽

The Body ◽

Ixodid Ticks ◽

Public Health Issue ◽

Hard Tick ◽

Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever ◽

Hard Ticks ◽

Slaughter House ◽

Cchf Virus

Background: Ticks are vectors of a wide variety of pathogens that can be transmitted to humans, and tick-borne diseases are a significant public health issue worldwide. The present study was carried out on the hard tick infestation of livestock transported to Rafsanjan slaughter house in the southeast of Iran. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was carried out biweekly from April to September 2016 to determine tick infestation of the meat-producing animals. All the livestock included in our study were thoroughly inspected for the presence of hard ticks on different parts of their bodies. Results: A total of 258 hard ticks were collected from the body of livestock hosts. The ticks that were sampled were classified into two genera and five species: Hyalomma marginatum, Hy. anatolicum, Hy. asiaticum, Hy. dromedarii, and Rhipicephalus sanguineus. Hyalomma dromedarii was the most abundant species in the study area. More than 50 percent of the sampled ticks were collected from the body of camels brought to the slaughter house however molecular analysis showed no Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF) virus infection in tick specimens. The Sex ratio of the sampled hard ticks shows that female tick infestation was more common among the study livestock. Conclusion: Due to the crucial role of hard ticks in the transmission of different pathogens to humans, additional investigations are necessary to determine the risk of consumption of infested meat-producing animals in the study area.

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Proteomic fingerprint identification of Neotropical hard tick species (Acari: Ixodidae) using a self-curated mass spectra reference library

10.1101/2020.04.13.040089 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Rolando A. Gittens ◽

Alejandro Almanza ◽

Eric Álvarez ◽

Kelly L. Bennett ◽

Luis C. Mejía ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Machine Learning ◽

Mass Spectrometry ◽

Species Identification ◽

Tick Species ◽

Mass Spectra ◽

Ixodid Ticks ◽

Hard Tick ◽

Taxonomic Identification ◽

Reference Library ◽

Hard Ticks

AbstractMatrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization (MALDI) time-of-flight mass spectrometry is an analytical method that detects macromolecules that can be used as biomarkers for taxonomic identification in arthropods. The conventional MALDI approach uses fresh laboratory-reared arthropod specimens to build a reference mass spectra library with high-quality standards required to achieve reliable identification. However, this may not be possible to accomplish in some arthropod groups that are difficult to rear under laboratory conditions, or for which only alcohol preserved samples are available. Here, we generated MALDI mass spectra of highly abundant proteins from the legs of 18 Neotropical species of adult field-collected hard ticks, several of which had not been analyzed by mass spectrometry before. We then used their mass spectra as fingerprints to identify each tick species by applying machine learning and pattern recognition algorithms that combined unsupervised and supervised clustering approaches. Both principal component analysis (PCA) and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) classification algorithms were able to identify spectra from different tick species, with LDA achieving the best performance when applied to field-collected specimens that did have an existing entry in a reference library of arthropod protein spectra. These findings contribute to the growing literature that ascertains mass spectrometry as a rapid and effective method for taxonomic identification of disease vectors, which is the first step to predict and manage arthropod-borne pathogens.Author SummaryHard ticks (Ixodidae) are external parasites that feed on the blood of almost every species of terrestrial vertebrate on earth, including humans. Due to a complete dependency on blood, both sexes and even immature stages, are capable of transmitting disease agents to their hosts, causing distress and sometimes death. Despite the public health significance of ixodid ticks, accurate species identification remains problematic. Vector species identification is core to developing effective vector control schemes. Herein, we provide the first report of MALDI identification of several species of field-collected Neotropical tick specimens preserved in ethanol for up to four years. Our methodology shows that identification does not depend on a commercial reference library of lab-reared samples, but with the help of machine learning it can rely on a self-curated reference library. In addition, our approach offers greater accuracy and lower cost per sample than conventional and modern identification approaches such as morphology and molecular barcoding.

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The efficacies of 5 insecticides against hard ticks Hyalomma asiaticum, Haemaphysalis longicornis and Rhipicephalus sanguineus

Experimental Parasitology ◽

10.1016/j.exppara.2015.06.011 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 157 ◽

pp. 44-47 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Haiyan Lu ◽

Qiaoyun Ren ◽

Youquan Li ◽

Junlong Liu ◽

Qingli Niu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Rhipicephalus Sanguineus ◽

Haemaphysalis Longicornis ◽

Hard Ticks

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FAUNAL AND ECOLOGICAL FEATURES OF THE DISTRIBUTION OF IXODID TICKS IN THE KURSK REGION

10.31016/978-5-6046256-1-3.2021.22.425-430 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 425-430

Author(s):

Rogulina ◽

Malysheva

Keyword(s):

Ixodes Ricinus ◽

Opposite Effect ◽

Common Species ◽

Dermacentor Reticulatus ◽

Climatic Conditions ◽

Ixodid Ticks ◽

Ecological Features ◽

Climate Indicators ◽

Kursk Region ◽

Biotopical Distribution

The article describes features of fauna and ecology of ixodid ticks on the example of the two most common species of ixodids Ixodes ricinus and Dermacentor reticulatus, which are the main carriers of tick-borne infections in the Kursk Region. We analyzed biotopical distribution of ixodids in landscapes of the Region, considered the main feeders of ixodid ticks in the conditions of the Kursk Region, and conducted a comparative analysis of parasitism peaks of ixodids in connection with climate indicators in epidemiological seasons in the period from 2015 to 2019. Ixodes ricinus is characterized by stronger association with forest biotopes, and Dermacentor reticulates is characterized by stronger association with meadow and forest biotopes. The data obtained indicate that biotopes of ixodid ticks in the Kursk Region are unevenly distributed; the parasitism peaks of ixodids and their numerical indicators are directly related to climatic conditions of the previous calendar year in the respective epidemiological season. As we have observed, increased humidity contributes to a decrease in the number of ixodids in following years, but a rise of the average annual air temperature has the opposite effect on the population and activity of the arthropods in the future.

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Genetic diversity of hard ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) in the south and east regions of Kazakhstan and northwestern China

10.21203/rs.3.rs-34664/v1 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Yicheng Yang ◽

Jin Tong ◽

Hongyin Ruan ◽

Meihua Yang ◽

Chunli Sang ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Genetic Diversity ◽

Tick Species ◽

Phylogenetic Analyses ◽

Rhipicephalus Sanguineus ◽

Dermacentor Reticulatus ◽

Northwestern China ◽

Morphological Identification ◽

The South ◽

Hard Ticks ◽

The Republic

Abstract Background The Republic of Kazakhstan, located in Central Asia, ranks as the world’s largest landlocked country, and borders five countries including China. There is a 1783 km long borderline between the South and East regions of Kazakhstan and Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR, northwestern China). To date, there is no report on the genetic diversity of ticks in these regions. Methods During 2015–2019, a total of 4392 hard ticks (representatives of ten species) were collected from 605 animals (sheep, cattle, camels, dogs and hedgehogs) at 24 sampling sites belonging to 15 districts in southeastern Kazakhstan. After morphological identification, 213 specimens of these ticks were selected for molecular analyses. In addition, 157 hard ticks collected from sheep and camels between 2015 and 2018 in seven districts of XUAR were used for comparison. Following DNA extraction, a fragment of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (cox1) gene, ranging from 631 bp to 889 bp, was used to analyze genetic diversity among these ticks. Findings: Phylogenetic analyses indicated that i) five tick species including Hyalomma detritum, Hyalomma asiaticum, Rhipicephalus turanicus, Dermacentor reticulatus and Haemaphysalis erinacei from Kazakhstan clustered together with conspecific ticks from XUAR; ii) the phylogenetic separation of Dermacentor marginatus from Kazakhstan and XUAR was highly supported; and iii) Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato from Alamaty Oblast was more closely related to a specimen from Iran than to that from XUAR. The network diagram of haplotypes showed that iv) Hy. asiaticum from Almaty and Kyzylorda (Kazakhstan) together with that from Yuli County of XUAR constituted an ancestral haplogroup; and v) three lineages of Rh. turanicus (from Israel, Almaty and South Kazakhstan, as well as from Usu city, Ulugqat and Baicheng Counties of XUAR) might have originated from an ancestral lineage in Alataw city, XUAR. Conclusions These findings indicate that: (i) mitochondrial lineages of some tick species are shared between southern, eastern regions of Kazakhstan and northwestern China; (ii) common evolutionary origin of Hy. asiaticum and Rh. turanicus in these regions might be attributed to historical international trade and movements of wildlife; and (iii) certain tick species show clear differences between Kazakhstan and XUAR, either in terms of abundance (e.g. Hy. scupense, Hy. marginatum) or exhibiting a phylogenetic split between these regions (relevant to D. marginatus).

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Atlas of ticks (Acari: Argasidae, Ixodidae) in Germany

Experimental and Applied Acarology ◽

10.1007/s10493-021-00619-1 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Franz Rubel ◽

Katharina Brugger ◽

Lidia Chitimia-Dobler ◽

Hans Dautel ◽

Elisabeth Meyer-Kayser ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Tick Species ◽

Migratory Birds ◽

Dermacentor Reticulatus ◽

Ixodid Ticks ◽

Federal States ◽

Ixodes Frontalis ◽

Argas Reflexus ◽

The One ◽

Argasid Tick ◽

First Time

AbstractAn updated and increased compilation of georeferenced tick locations in Germany is presented here. This data collection extends the dataset published some years ago by another 1448 new tick locations, 900 locations of which were digitized from literature and 548 locations are published here for the first time. This means that a total of 3492 georeferenced tick locations is now available for Germany. The tick fauna of Germany includes two species of Argasidae in the genera Argas and Carios and 19 species of Ixodidae in the genera Dermacentor, Haemaphysalis, and Ixodes, altogether 21 tick species. In addition, three species of Ixodidae in the genera Hyalomma (each spring imported by migratory birds) and Rhipicephalus (occasionally imported by dogs returning from abroad with their owners) are included in the tick atlas. Of these, the georeferenced locations of 23 tick species are depicted in maps. The occurrence of the one remaining tick species, the recently described Ixodes inopinatus, is given at the level of the federal states. The most common and widespread tick species is Ixodes ricinus, with records in all 16 federal states. With the exception of Hamburg, Dermacentor reticulatus was also found in all federal states. The occurrence of the ixodid ticks Ixodes canisuga, Ixodes frontalis, Ixodes hexagonus and I. inopinatus were documented in at least 11 federal states each. The two mentioned argasid tick species were also documented in numerous federal states, the pigeon tick Argas reflexus in 11 and the bat tick Carios vespertilionis in seven federal states. The atlas of ticks in Germany and the underlying digital dataset in the supplement can be used to improve global tick maps or to study the effects of climate change and habitat alteration on the distribution of tick species.

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