Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Cinegéticos, IREC (CSIC-UCLM- JCCM) Ronda de Toledo, 12, 13071 Ciudad Real, Spain.
Instituto de Investigación de Recursos Cinegéticos, IREC (CSIC-UCLM- JCCM) Ronda de Toledo, 12, 13071 Ciudad Real, Spain.
Ticks Tick Borne Dis. 2019 Feb;10(2):286-289. doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2018.11.002. Epub 2018 Nov 13.
Macroparasites in general, and ectoparasites in particular, have the potential to regulate host population dynamics. In this context, this study addresses the tick parasitism traits of the Mediterranean spur-thighed tortoise (Testudo graeca) in the core area of its distribution range (northwestern Morocco, Maamora). It was discovered that 92.5% of the tortoises were parasitized by ticks in spring, with an infestation intensity and an abundance of 6.7 and 6.2 tick/tortoise, respectively. The observed parasitization rates were among the highest reported worldwide for T. graeca, which could relate to density-depended effects driving host-parasite interactions. The main tick species that parasitized the tortoises were Hyalomma aegyptium (95.6% of the ticks and in the 100% of the parasitized tortoises), Hy. marginatum, Hy. excavatum and Hy. scupense. Individual predictors for the tortoises, such as age, sex and the interaction between body condition and sex, were significantly related to tick abundance. Age-related behavioural differences might favour a higher host-tick effective contact in adults than in juveniles. The fact that males are more active in spring - the breeding season - might explain the observed male-bias in tick abundance and may also be responsible for the negative effect of male body condition on tick infestation rate in contrast to females. Given the potential role played by parasites as regards modulating population dynamics, our results suggest that ticks should be taken into account in the conservation and management programmes of this tortoise species.
寄生虫通常，特别是外寄生虫，有可能调节宿主种群动态。在这种情况下，本研究探讨了地中海马氏龟（Testudo graeca）在其分布范围核心区（摩洛哥西北部，Maamora）的蜱虫寄生特征。研究发现，92.5%的龟类在春季被蜱虫寄生，寄生强度和丰度分别为 6.7 和 6.2 只蜱/只龟。观察到的寄生率是全球范围内对 T. graeca 报道的最高寄生率之一，这可能与密度依赖效应驱动宿主-寄生虫相互作用有关。寄生龟类的主要蜱种为埃及血蜱（95.6%的蜱虫和 100%的寄生龟类）、Hyalomma marginatum、Hyalomma excavatum 和 Hyalomma scupense。个体预测因子，如年龄、性别以及身体状况和性别的相互作用，与蜱虫丰度显著相关。与年龄相关的行为差异可能有利于成年龟类与蜱虫的有效接触多于幼龟类。雄性在春季（繁殖季节）更活跃的事实可能解释了观察到的蜱虫丰度雄性偏倚，并可能是导致雄性身体状况对蜱虫感染率产生负面影响而雌性没有这种影响的原因。鉴于寄生虫在调节种群动态方面可能发挥的作用，我们的研究结果表明，在保护和管理这种龟类物种的计划中，应考虑到蜱虫。
