title: Experimental infestation of llamas (Lama glama) with Boophilus microplus (Acari:Ixodidae).
abstract: Two llamas (Lama glama) were infested with approximately 20,000 Boophilus microplus larvae each and maintained under controlled conditions to collect the detached adult ticks. A total of 72 engorged and semi-engorged females were recovered with a mean weight of 163.0 +/- 70.6 mg. Sixty-three (87.5%) of these ticks oviposited and 60 (95.2%) of the egg masses produced larvae. Six of the heaviest females laid 18,838 eggs from which 16,545 (87.8%) hatched. These results show that llamas are able to maintain a population of B. microplus under experimental conditions. Further studies are required to determine the role of llamas as alternative hosts for B. microplus under field conditions.
authors.affiliation: Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria, Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Salta, Argentina. saproani@inta.gov.ar
authors.forename: D H
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Aguirre
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Cafrune
authors.forename: A A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Guglielmone
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002161:Camelids, New World / Q000469:parasitology*; D005260:Female; D008297:Male; D013984:Tick Infestations / Q000662:veterinary*; D013987:Ticks