Ticks infesting livestock on farms in Western Sicily, Italy.
The results of a 2-year survey on ticks infesting livestock on farms in Western Sicily, Italy, are reported. Several dogs living in the same area were also examined for ticks. Moreover, free-living ticks from one cattle farm were caught by CO(2) traps and flagging. A total of 6208 specimens was collected belonging to 9 species: Rhipicephalus bursa (32.4%), Rhipicephalus turanicus (22.7%), Rhipicephalus sanguineus (19.3%), Hyalomma lusitanicum (12.0%), Haemaphysalis punctata (7.8%), Hyalomma marginatum (3.5%), Dermacentor marginatus (1.4%), Ixodes ricinus (0.8%) and Ixodes hexagonus (0.1%). The species belonging to the genus Rhipicephalus were present on all hosts and habitats monitored, R. bursa was found to be abundant on cattle (46.3%) and sheep (62.0%), R. sanguineus was prevalent on dogs (50.4%), and R. turanicus on donkeys (41.0%) and as free-living species (48.5%).
Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sicilia A. Mirri, Palermo, Italy.
Alessandra
A
Torina
Cristina
C
Khoury
Santo
S
Caracappa
Michele
M
Maroli
D000820:Animal Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000469:parasitology*; D000818:Animals; D000829:Animals, Domestic; D002417:Cattle; D004285:Dogs; D018397:Equidae; D015994:Incidence; D015995:Prevalence; D012756:Sheep; D012802:Sicily / Q000453:epidemiology; D013984:Tick Infestations / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary*; D013987:Ticks / Q000254:growth & development*