Università degli Studi di Messina, Dipartimento di Scienze Veterinarie, Italy.
Università degli Studi di Messina, Dipartimento di Scienze Veterinarie, Italy; Facultade de Veterinaria, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, Investigación en Sanidad Animal: Galicia (Grupo INVESAGA), Spain.
Vet Parasitol Reg Stud Reports. 2021 Apr;24:100555. doi: 10.1016/j.vprsr.2021.100555. Epub 2021 Mar 11.
The European wild rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus is a widespread mammal that may act as host for ectoparasites and reservoir for some vector-borne pathogens. Study aims were to investigate the arthropod fauna that may infect the European wild rabbit, to assess the ecological indexes and to investigate tick preferred attachment sites. The survey was conducted on 105 wild rabbits hunted by poachers in a Mediterranean woodland area in the province of Ragusa. Animals were individually examined for ectoparasite presence and the tick load assessed on eleven body anatomical sites. Ticks and fleas were found on 79 (75.2%) and 3 (2.9%) out of the 105 examined rabbits, respectively. Three tick species were identified; Rhipicephalus pusillus was the most abundant followed by Rhipicephalus turanicus and Ixodes gibbosus. Although ticks were found on all anatomical sites, ears, forelimbs, and abdomen were those more frequently infected. All the collected fleas were identified as Spilopsyllus cuniculi. Some of the ectoparasite species found on examined wild rabbits are recognized as potential vectors of pathogens of animal and human concern, such as, Rickettsia sibirica mongolitimonae and Rickettsia massiliae. The most abundant tick species found in this study is the main vector of some zoonotic pathogens; therefore, the possible role of O. cuniculus in their maintenance should be further investigated.
欧洲野兔（Oryctolagus cuniculus）是一种分布广泛的哺乳动物，可能是寄生虫的宿主，也是一些媒介传播病原体的宿主。本研究旨在调查可能感染欧洲野兔的节肢动物区系，评估生态指标，并调查蜱虫的首选附着部位。该调查在拉古萨省一个地中海林地地区，对 105 只被偷猎者猎捕的野生兔子进行了调查。对每只动物进行个体检查，以确定是否存在寄生虫，并评估 11 个身体解剖部位的蜱虫负载。在检查的 105 只兔子中，有 79 只（75.2%）和 3 只（2.9%）分别发现了蜱虫和跳蚤。共鉴定出 3 种蜱虫，其中数量最多的是钝缘蜱（Rhipicephalus pusillus），其次是土耳其钝缘蜱（Rhipicephalus turanicus）和钝缘革蜱（Ixodes gibbosus）。尽管在所有解剖部位都发现了蜱虫，但耳朵、前肢和腹部是感染最频繁的部位。所有收集到的跳蚤均被鉴定为兔虱（Spilopsyllus cuniculi）。在检查的野生兔子中发现的一些寄生虫物种被认为是动物和人类关注的病原体的潜在媒介，例如，西伯利亚立克次体（Rickettsia sibirica mongolitimonae）和马赛立克次体（Rickettsia massiliae）。本研究中发现的最丰富的蜱虫是一些人畜共患病原体的主要媒介；因此，应该进一步研究 O. cuniculus 在维持这些病原体中的可能作用。
