title: Life cycle and parasitic competence of Dermacentor nitens Neumann, 1897 (Acari: Ixodidae) on different animal species.
abstract: The objective of this study was to evaluate the life cycle and parasitic competence of Dermacentor nitens (Neumann, 1897) on different animal species. Experimental infestations were induced in five specimens each of seven species of possible hosts: rabbits, horses, sheep, cows, guinea pigs, birds and dogs. Rabbits were infested in the ear using artificial feeding chambers, and the horses, sheep, cows and dogs were infested in the ear without feeding chambers. For the infestation of guinea pigs, artificial feeding chambers were fixed on the back. Birds were infested by placing larvae on the back and under the wings without the use of chambers. All animals were inspected daily until the end of the parasitic phase (when the engorged females detached). The average period of engorgement was 25.1days on a horse, with larvae requiring 8days and nymphs 9days to reach engorgement; the average weight of engorged females was 271.4mg; the average weight of egg batches produced was 159.3mg, and the feed conversion rate was 56.8%. On rabbits, the average engorgement period was 27.6days, larvae and nymphs reached engorgement after 7.4 and 11days, respectively, the average weight of an engorged female was 108.4mg and the egg mass was 30.6mg. The feed conversion rate on rabbits was 30%. Cows, sheep, guinea pigs, dogs and birds were not competent hosts, since no engorged females were recovered. Rabbits, when artificially infested, can be used as an alternative host for the maintenance of these ticks in the laboratory. The parasitic specificity of D. nitens for horses was demonstrated in this study.
authors.affiliation: Pós-Graduação em Doenças Infecciosas e Parasitárias-Faculdade de Medicina, UFMS-Univ. Federal Mato Grosso do Sul, Laboratório de Biologia do Carrapato, Embrapa Gado de Corte, Campo Grande, MS, Brazil. Electronic address: vinicius_srod@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Vinicius da Silva
authors.initials: VDS
authors.lastname: Rodrigues
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Biologia do Carrapato, Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária, Embrapa Gado de Corte, Bolsista DCR Fundect, MS-Governo do estado de Mato Grosso do Sul, Campo Grande, MS, Brazil. Electronic address: marcosvagar@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Marcos Valério
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Garcia
authors.affiliation: Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias, UNESP-Univ. Estadual Paulista, Campus de Jaboticabal, Departamento de Patologia Veterinária, CPPAR-Centro de Pesquisas em Sanidade Animal, Brazil. Electronic address: breno.c.cruz@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Breno Cayeiro
authors.initials: BC
authors.lastname: Cruz
authors.affiliation: Faculdade de Ciências Agrárias e Veterinárias, UNESP-Univ. Estadual Paulista, Campus de Jaboticabal, Departamento de Patologia Veterinária, CPPAR-Centro de Pesquisas em Sanidade Animal, Brazil. Electronic address: willian.vet@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Willian Giquelin
authors.initials: WG
authors.lastname: Maciel
authors.affiliation: Laboratório de Biologia do Carrapato, Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária, Embrapa Gado de Corte, Campo Grande, MS, Brazil. Electronic address: namorvet@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Namor Pinheiro
authors.initials: NP
authors.lastname: Zimmermann
authors.affiliation: Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária, Embrapa Gado de Corte, Campo Grande, MS, Brazil. Electronic address: wilson.koller@embrapa.br.
authors.forename: Wilson Werner
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Koller
authors.affiliation: Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária, Embrapa Gado de Corte, Campo Grande, MS, Brazil. Electronic address: jacqueline.barros@embrapa.br.
authors.forename: Jacqueline Cavalcante
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Barros
authors.affiliation: Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária, Embrapa Gado de Corte, Campo Grande, MS, Brazil. Electronic address: renato.andreotti@embrapa.br.
authors.forename: Renato
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Andreotti
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight; D002417:Cattle / Q000469:parasitology; D003870:Dermacentor / Q000502:physiology*; D004285:Dogs / Q000469:parasitology; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D006168:Guinea Pigs / Q000469:parasitology; D006736:Horses / Q000469:parasitology; D058507:Host Specificity; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions; D007814:Larva / Q000502:physiology; D008018:Life Cycle Stages; D009758:Nymph / Q000502:physiology; D011817:Rabbits / Q000469:parasitology; D012756:Sheep / Q000469:parasitology; D013984:Tick Infestations / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*
keywords: Artificial infestation; Dermacentor nitens; Hosts; Tick