Abstract
In order to determine the effect of various hosts on the feeding performance of the tick Hyalomma truncatum, we used three mammalian species as hosts. Larvae and nymphs of H. truncatum were fed, under controlled laboratory conditions, on gerbils, guinea-pigs and rabbits. The larvae fed for 4.3±1.4 days on gerbils, 5.6±1.3 days on guinea-pigs and 4.7±1.2 days on rabbits. The mean weights of the larvae which fed on the rabbits, guinea-pigs and gerbils were 0.58± 0.09, 0.46±0.04 and 0.45±0.04 mg. respectively. The feeding periods of the nymphs on gerbils, guinea-pigs and rabbits were 7.9±1.3, 8.6±1.3 and 9.6±2.2 days respectively. The mean weights of the nymphs which fed on the gerbils, guinea-pigs and rabbits were 22.5±2.8, 19.7±1.3 and 15.8±1.4 mg, respectively. Hyalomma truncatum demonstrated a life cycle of a three-host tick on gerbils and guinea-pigs and of a two-host tick on rabbits. The evolutionary advantage of a two-host cycle over a three-host cycle in metastriate ticks is discussed.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
REFERENCES
Bezuidenhout, J. D. and Malherbe, A. 1981. Sweating sickness: a comparative study of virulent and avirulent strains of Hyalomma truncatum. In Tick biology and control, G. B. Whitehead and J. D. Gibson (eds), pp. 7–12.
Dipeolu, O. O. 1983. Studies on ticks of veterinary importance in Nigeria. vi. Comparisons of oviposition and the hatching of eggs of Hyalomma spp. Vet. Parasitol. 13: 251–265.
Fielden L. J., Rechav, Y. and Bryson, N. R. 1992. Acquired immunity to larvae of Amblyomma marmoreum and A. hebraeum by tortoises, guinea-pigs and guinea fowl. Med. Vet. Entomol. 6: 251–254.
Hoogstraal, H. 1956. African Ixodoidea. I. Ticks of the Sudan. (with Special Reference to Equatoria Province and with Preliminary Reviews of the genera Boophilus, Margaropus and Hyalomma). US Government Printing Office, Washington, DC.
Hoogstraal, H. 1978. Biology of ticks. In Tick-borne diseases and their vectors, J. K. H. Wilde (ed.), pp. 3–14. Lewis Ltd. Edinburgh.
Hoogstraal, H. 1979. The epidemiology of tick-borne Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever in Asia, Europe and Africa. J. Med. Entomol. 15: 307–417.
Hoogstraal, H. and Kim, K. C. 1985. Ticks and mammals coevolution with emphasizes on Haemophysalis. In Coevolution of parasitic arthropods and mammals, K. C. Kim (ed.), pp. 505–568. Wiley, New York.
Knight, M. M., Norval, R. A. I. and Rechav, Y. 1978. The life cycle of the tick Hyalomma marginatum rufipes (Koch) (Acarina: Ixodidae) under laboratory conditions. J. Parasitol. 64: 143–146.
Latif, A. A. 1985. Tick (Acari = Ixodoidea:Ixodidae) immatures feeding on cattle, camels and sheep in the Sudan, with notes on behaviour of Hyalomma anatolicum anatolicum larvae fed on different hosts. Insect Sci. Appl. 6: 59–61.
Linthicum, K. J., Logan, T. M., Kondig, J. P., Gordon, S. W. and Bailey, C. L. 1991. Laboratory biology of Hyalomma truncatum (Acari: Ixodidae) J. Med. Entomol. 28: 280–283.
Norval, R. A. I. 1978. Repeated feeding of Amblyomma hebraeum (Acarina: Ixodidae) immatures on laboratory hosts. Host effects on tick yield, engorged weight and engorgment period J. Parasitol. 64: 910–917.
Pegram, R. G., Hoogstraal, H. and Wassef, Y. 1981. Ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) of Ethiopia. I. Distribution, ecology and host relationships of species infesting livestock. Bull. Entomol. Res. 71: 339–359.
Rahman, M. H. 1984. Effects of host immunity on the life cycle of Hyalomma rufipes Koch, (Ixodoidea: Ixodidae). Follia Parasitol. (Praha) 31: 63–67.
Rechav, Y. 1968. The effect of delayed mating on feeding time and oviposition in Hyalomma exavatum (Koch) with a note on parthenogenesis. Refuah Vet. 25: 172–178.
Rechav, Y. 1986. Seasonal activity and hosts of the vectors of Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever in Southern Africa. S. Afr. Med. J. 65: 364–368.
Rechav, Y. 1992. Naturally acquired resistance to ticks, a global view. Insect Sci. Appl. 13: 495–504.
Rechav, Y., Zeederberg, M. E. and Zeller, D. A. 1987. Dynamics of African tick populations in a natural Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever focus. J. Med. Entomol. 24: 575–583.
Rechav, Y., Clarke, F. C. and Dauth, J. 1991. Aquisition of immunity in cattle against the blue tick Boophilus decoloratus. Exp. Appl. Acarol. 11: 51–56.
Rechav, Y., Dauth, J., Varma, M. G. R., Clarke, F. C., Els, D. A., Heller-Haupt, A. and Dreyer, M. E. 1989. Changes in the concentration of globulins in naive guinea-pigs during the feeding period of immature stages of the tick Rhipicephalus evertsi evertsi (Acari: Ixodidae) J. Med. Entomol.
Theiler, G. 1956. Zoological survey of the Union of South Africa. Tick survey, part ix the distribution of the three South African Hyalommas or bontpoots. Onderstepoort J. Vet. Res. 27: 239–269.
Walker, J. B. 1970. Notes on the Common Tick Species of East Africa, 3rd ed. Coopers Kenya Ltd, Nairobi.
Wilson, M. L., Dykstra, E. A. and Schmidt, B. A. 1993. Temperature and humidity dependent longevity of unfed adult Hyalomma truncatum (Acari: Ixodidae). J. Med. Entomol. 30: 467–471.
Yassir, O. M., Osman, O. M. and El-Amin, T. H. 1992. Life cycle studies of the tick species, Amblyomma lepidum, Hyalomma anatolicum anatolicum, and Rhipicephalus evertsi evertsi under laboratory conditions. Insect Sci. Appl. 13: 565–568.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Rechav, Y., Fielden, L.J. The effect of various host species on the feeding performance of immature stages of the tick Hyalomma truncatum (Acari: Ixodidae). Exp Appl Acarol 21, 551–559 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1018444315709
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1018444315709