title: The vector tick Ixodes ricinus feeding on an arboreal rodent-the edible dormouse Glis glis.
abstract: The reservoir competence and long life expectancy of edible dormice, Glis glis, suggest that they serve as efficient reservoir hosts for Lyme disease (LD) spirochetes. Their arboreality, however, may reduce the probability to encounter sufficient questing Ixodes ricinus ticks to acquire and perpetuate LD spirochetes. To define the potential role of this small arboreal hibernator in the transmission cycle of LD spirochetes, we examined their rate and density of infestation with subadult ticks throughout the season of activity. Of the 1081 edible dormice that we captured at five study sites in Southern Germany and inspected for ticks at 2946 capture occasions, 26 % were infested with at least one and as many as 26 subadult ticks on their ear pinnae. The distribution of ticks feeding on edible dormice was highly aggregated. Although only few individuals harbored nymphal ticks soon after their emergence from hibernation, the rate of nymphal infestation increased steadily throughout the season and reached about 35 % in September. Dormice inhabiting a site with few conspecifics seemed more likely to be infested by numerous ticks, particularly nymphs, than those individuals living in densely populated sites. Male dormice were more likely to be parasitized by numerous nymphs than were females, independent of their age and body mass. Our observation that season, population density, and sex affect the rates of ticks feeding on edible dormice suggests that the contribution of edible dormice to the transmission cycle of LD spirochetes depends mainly on their ranging behavior and level of activity.
authors.affiliation: Animal Husbandry and Animal Breeding, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany.|Institute of Zoology, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Joanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fietz
authors.affiliation: Animal Husbandry and Animal Breeding, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Franz
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Langer
authors.affiliation: Animal Husbandry and Animal Breeding, University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany.
authors.forename: Nadine
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Havenstein
authors.affiliation: Potsdam University Outpatient Clinic, Potsdam University, Potsdam, Germany.
authors.forename: Franz-Rainer
authors.initials: FR
authors.lastname: Matuschka
authors.affiliation: Environmental Systems Analysis, Institute of Geoecology, Technische Universität Braunschweig, Langer Kamp 19c, 38106, Braunschweig, Germany. dania.richter@tu-bs.de.
authors.forename: Dania
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Richter
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000818:Animals; D025065:Borrelia burgdorferi / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D005858:Germany / Q000453:epidemiology; D006801:Humans; D018884:Ixodes / Q000382:microbiology*; D008193:Lyme Disease / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission*; D008297:Male; D046330:Myoxidae / Q000469:parasitology*; D009758:Nymph; D011156:Population Density; D012621:Seasons; D013984:Tick Infestations / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*
keywords: Edible dormouse; Ixodes ricinus; Reservoir host