title: Blood feeding on large grazers affects the transmission of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato by Ixodes ricinus.
abstract: The presence of Ixodes ricinus and their associated Borrelia infections on large grazers was investigated. Carcases of freshly shot red deer, mouflon and wild boar were examined for the presence of any stage of I. ricinus. Questing ticks were collected from locations where red deer and wild boar are known to occur. Presence of Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. DNA was examined in a fraction of the collected ticks. Larvae, nymphs and adult ticks were found on the three large grazers. Red deer had the highest tick burden, with many of the nymphs and adult females attached for engorgement. Most larvae had not attached. The mean number of ticks on the animals varied from 13 to 67. Ticks were highly aggregated amongst the animals: some animals had no ticks, while others had high numbers. Larvae and nymphs were mostly found on the ears, while adult ticks were attached to the axillae. The Borrelia infection rate of questing nymphs was 8.5%. Unengorged wandering nymphs on deer had a Borrelia infection rate of 12.5%, while only 0.9% of feeding nymphs carried a Borrelia infection. The infection rate of unengorged adult male ticks was 4.5%, and that of feeding female ticks was 0.7%. The data suggest that ticks feeding on red deer and wild boar lose their Borrelia infections. The implications of the results are discussed with respect to Borrelia epidemiology and maintenance of a Borrelia reservoir as well as the role of reproductive hosts for Ixodes ricinus.
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Entomology, Wageningen University, PO Box 8031, 6700 EH Wageningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: F C A
authors.initials: FC
authors.lastname: Pacilly
authors.affiliation: Resource Ecology Group, Wageningen University, Droevendaalsesteeg 3a, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: M E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Benning
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Entomology, Wageningen University, PO Box 8031, 6700 EH Wageningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: F
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Jacobs
authors.affiliation: National Park de Hoge Veluwe, Apeldoornseweg 250, 7351 TA Hoenderloo, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Leidekker
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Entomology, Wageningen University, PO Box 8031, 6700 EH Wageningen, The Netherlands; Laboratory for Zoonoses and Environmental Microbiology, National Institute for Public Health and Environment (RIVM), Antonie van Leeuwenhoeklaan 9, PO Box 1, 3720 BA Bilthoven, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Sprong
authors.affiliation: Resource Ecology Group, Wageningen University, Droevendaalsesteeg 3a, 6708 PB Wageningen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: S E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Van Wieren
authors.affiliation: Laboratory of Entomology, Wageningen University, PO Box 8031, 6700 EH Wageningen, The Netherlands. Electronic address: willem.takken@wur.nl.
authors.forename: W
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Takken
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001096:Arachnid Vectors / Q000382:microbiology*; D015748:Borrelia burgdorferi Group / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000502:physiology*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D003670:Deer; D005260:Female; D060434:Herbivory; D006801:Humans; D018884:Ixodes / Q000382:microbiology*; D007814:Larva; D008193:Lyme Disease / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission / Q000662:veterinary*; D008297:Male; D009426:Netherlands / Q000453:epidemiology; D009758:Nymph; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA / Q000662:veterinary; D034561:Sheep, Domestic; D034421:Sus scrofa
chemical_list: D004269:DNA, Bacterial
keywords: Borrelia burgdorferi s.l.; Ixodes ricinus; Mouflon; Red deer; Sheep tick; The Netherlands; Wild boar