Hoffman Tove, Carra Laura G, Öhagen Patrik, Fransson Thord, Barboutis Christos, Piacentini Dario, Figuerola Jordi, Kiat Yosef, Onrubia Alejandro, Jaenson Thomas G T, Nilsson Kenneth, Lundkvist Åke, Olsen Björn
Department of Medical Biochemistry and Microbiology, Zoonosis Science Center, Uppsala University, Husargatan 3, SE-751 23 Uppsala, Sweden.
Uppsala Clinical Research Center, Dag Hammarskjölds väg 38, SE-751 85 Uppsala, Sweden.
One Health. 2021 Nov 11;13:100349. doi: 10.1016/j.onehlt.2021.100349. eCollection 2021 Dec.
The ecology of the vertebrate host contributes to the geographical range expansion of ticks. In this study, we investigated which tick taxa that infest and are dispersed by birds along African-Western Palaearctic flyways during northward migration, and whether bird ecology was associated with tick taxa.
Ticks were collected from birds trapped at bird observatories in Spain, Italy, Greece, and Israel during the spring migration of 2014 and 2015, using mist nets. The tick-infested bird species were classified into guilds, using different combinations of the variables: migration distance, wintering region, foraging behaviour, and winter habitat. Ticks were molecularly determined to genus and species level by sequencing fragments of the 12S ribosomal DNA (rDNA) gene and by phylogenetic inference, using the Maximum Likelihood algorithm. Data were analysed using descriptive measures, graphs, Chi2 tests, the Tukey-Kramer test, and a parametric linear model (generalized linear model) in order to analyse and adjust for characteristics in the bird guilds and their relationship to collected tick taxa.
Most (84.2%) of the 10,209 trapped birds were long-distance migrants, of which 2.4% were infested by ticks. The most common tick species was (77.7%; 447/575), a known vector and reservoir of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever virus. Bird guilds containing only long-distance migrants with wintering areas in Africa were associated with the tick species ( < 0.0001). Furthermore, bird winter habitat was associated with ( = 0.003); with bird species overwintering in open habitat ( = 0.014) and wetlands ( = 0.046) having significantly more as compared to birds with a winter habitat comprising forest and shrubs ( = 0.82).
With climate change, the likelihood of establishment of permanent populations in central and northern Europe is increasing. Thus, surveillance programs for monitoring the risk of introduction and establishment of in the Western-Palaearctic should be established. Our study suggests that migratory bird species wintering in African open habitats and wetlands are good candidates for monitoring potential introduction.
脊椎动物宿主的生态环境有助于蜱虫地理分布范围的扩大。在本研究中，我们调查了在向北迁徙期间沿非洲 - 西古北区飞行路线寄生并通过鸟类传播的蜱虫种类，以及鸟类生态与蜱虫种类是否相关。
在2014年和2015年春季迁徙期间，使用雾网从西班牙、意大利、希腊和以色列的鸟类观测站捕获的鸟类身上采集蜱虫。根据迁徙距离、越冬区域、觅食行为和冬季栖息地等变量的不同组合，将感染蜱虫的鸟类物种分类为不同的类群。通过对12S核糖体DNA（rDNA）基因片段进行测序，并使用最大似然算法进行系统发育推断，从分子水平确定蜱虫的属和种。使用描述性统计量、图表、卡方检验、图基 - 克雷默检验和参数线性模型（广义线性模型）对数据进行分析，以分析和调整鸟类类群的特征及其与所采集蜱虫种类的关系。
在捕获的10209只鸟类中，大多数（84.2%）是长途迁徙者，其中2.4%感染了蜱虫。最常见的蜱虫种类是[具体蜱虫种类未给出]（77.7%；447/575），它是克里米亚 - 刚果出血热病毒的已知传播媒介和宿主。仅包含在非洲越冬的长途迁徙者的鸟类类群与[具体蜱虫种类未给出]蜱虫种类相关（P < 0.0001）。此外，鸟类的冬季栖息地与[具体蜱虫种类未给出]相关（P = 0.003）；与在开阔栖息地（P = 0.014）和湿地（P = 0.046）越冬的鸟类相比，在由森林和灌木组成的冬季栖息地的鸟类身上的[具体蜱虫种类未给出]明显更多（P = 0.82）。
随着气候变化，蜱虫在中欧和北欧建立永久种群的可能性正在增加。因此，应建立监测计划，以监测西古北区蜱虫引入和建立的风险。我们的研究表明，在非洲开阔栖息地和湿地越冬的候鸟是监测潜在引入的良好候选对象。
