Schulze Terry L, Jordan Robert A
Division of Epidemiology, Environmental and Occupational Health, New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, P.O. Box 369, Trenton, NJ 08625, USA.
J Med Entomol. 2003 Jul;40(4):395-402. doi: 10.1603/0022-2585-40.4.395.
Questing Ixodes scapularis Say and Amblyomma americanum (L.) nymphs were collected in the field by drag sampling to determine whether ticks would be collected in greater numbers during certain times of the day and under certain ambient meteorological conditions. Ticks were collected hourly for 16 h on 4 d and counts were contrasted with simultaneous measurements of ambient temperature and relative humidity, and with similar measurements made within the leaf litter. Peak numbers of questing I. scapularis and A. americanum nymphs were collected at distinctly different times of day, suggesting that the two species were responding to different environmental conditions. Both species demonstrated responses to diel changes in local meteorological conditions. Numbers of ticks were correlated with ambient temperature and humidity and with conditions recorded in the leaf litter that appeared to play a significant role in mediating questing behavior of both species. The time of day when tick sampling is conducted might significantly bias population estimates for sympatric species and the assessment of tick-borne disease transmission risk.
通过拖网采样在野外收集肩突硬蜱（Ixodes scapularis Say）和美洲钝缘蜱（Amblyomma americanum (L.)）若虫，以确定在一天中的特定时间以及特定的环境气象条件下是否能收集到更多蜱虫。在4天的时间里，每小时收集蜱虫，持续16小时，并将蜱虫数量与同时测量的环境温度和相对湿度进行对比，同时也与在落叶层内进行的类似测量结果进行对比。肩突硬蜱和美洲钝缘蜱若虫的采集高峰出现在一天中明显不同的时间，这表明这两个物种对不同的环境条件做出了反应。两个物种都表现出对当地气象条件昼夜变化的反应。蜱虫数量与环境温度和湿度以及落叶层中记录的条件相关，这些条件似乎在调节两个物种的搜寻行为中发挥了重要作用。进行蜱虫采样的时间可能会显著影响同域物种的种群估计以及蜱传疾病传播风险的评估。
