Department of Livestock and Pasture Science, Faculty of Science and Agriculture, University of Fort Hare, Private Bag X1314, Alice, 5700, South Africa.
Dohne Agricultural Development Institute, Private Bag X15, Stutterheim, 4930, South Africa.
Exp Appl Acarol. 2018 Mar;74(3):317-328. doi: 10.1007/s10493-018-0234-2. Epub 2018 Feb 22.
A total of 31,425 ticks were collected from 10 cattle and also from six drag-samples during the 12-month study period. Adult ticks were removed from the right hand side of each animal and all instars of ticks were placed in containers filled with 70% ethanol. Based on morphological traits, 10 tick species were identified: Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) decoloratus (32.5%), R. evertsi evertsi (18.8%), R. appendiculatus (17.3%), Amblyomma hebraeum (16.3%), R. simus (7.7%), Ixodes pilosus (3.8%), Hyalomma rufipes (3.5%), R. follis (0.08%), Haemaphysalis elliptica (0.04%), H. silacea (0.02%). The southern African yellow dog tick, H. elliptica, was only found on vegetation. The agro-ecological zones differ significantly in tick species and their distribution. The A. hebraeum and R. evertsi evertsi counts were higher in Kowie Thicket (KT) during summer season (2.05 ± 0.01 and 1.00 ± 0.09, respectively) compared to Bedford Dry Grassland (BDG) and Bhisho Thornveld (BT) veld types. In all vegetation types, R. appendiculatus had higher counts in KT in spring (0.91 ± 0.08), summer (0.78 ± 0.08) and winter (0.78 ± 0.08). Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) decoloratus was more frequent in the BT (1.78 ± 0.11) during the summer season. BDG had lower tick infestation with R. evertsi evertsi being the most frequent species in summer. No H. rufipes was collected in the KT. Of epidemiological interest, R. (B.) microplus was absent in the study area which needs further investigation. Within the context of this study, we found agro-ecological differences and seasonal variations to have influence on tick species distribution.
在 12 个月的研究期间，从 10 头牛和 6 个拖曳样本中总共收集了 31425 只蜱虫。从每只动物的右侧取下成年蜱虫，将所有龄期的蜱虫放入装满 70%乙醇的容器中。根据形态特征，鉴定出 10 种蜱虫：染色璃眼蜱（32.5%）、边缘革蜱（18.8%）、扇头蜱（17.3%）、血红扇头蜱（16.3%）、钝缘蜱（7.7%）、草原革蜱（3.8%）、乳突钝缘蜱（3.5%）、扇头蜱（0.08%）、镰形扇头蜱（0.04%）、鳞形扇头蜱（0.02%）。南非黄狗蜱仅在植被上发现。农业生态区在蜱种及其分布上有显著差异。在夏季，Kowie Thicket（KT）的 A. hebraeum 和 R. evertsi evertsi 数量较高（分别为 2.05±0.01 和 1.00±0.09），而 Bedford Dry Grassland（BDG）和 Bhisho Thornveld（BT）的数量较低。在所有植被类型中，春季、夏季和冬季，KT 的 R. appendiculatus 数量较高（分别为 0.91±0.08、0.78±0.08 和 0.78±0.08）。在夏季，BT 的 Rhipicephalus（Boophilus）decoloratus 更为频繁（1.78±0.11）。BDG 的蜱虫感染率较低，夏季最常见的物种是边缘革蜱。在 KT 未采集到血红扇头蜱。在流行病学方面，研究区域内没有发现 R.（B.）microplus，需要进一步调查。在本研究范围内，我们发现农业生态差异和季节性变化对蜱种分布有影响。
