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Prevalence and species composition of ixodid ticks infesting horses in three agroecologies in central Oromia, Ethiopia

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Abstract

A cross-sectional study was conducted to determine the species composition and prevalence of ixodid ticks infesting horses in three agroecological zones in central Ethiopia. For this purpose, a total of 1,168 horses were examined for tick infestation. An overall prevalence of 39.04% of tick infestation on horses was recorded. A total of 917 adult ticks were collected from infested horses. Amblyomma, Boophilus, Rhipicephalus, and Hyalomma genera with the respective prevalence of 3.2%, 1.8%, 29.2%, and 4.7% were identified. In the study, Rhipicephalus evertsi evertsi was encountered with the highest prevalence (15.8%) whereas Amblyomma gemma was with lowest prevalence (1.5%). From the highland, Hyalomma marginatum rufipes (3.1%), Hyalomma truncatum (1.0%), and Boophilus decoloratus (0.3%) were identified. From the midland, R. evertsi evertsi (27.5%), Rhipicephalus pulchellus (18%), Amblyomma variegatum (3.6%), B. decoloratus (2.8%), H. marginatum rufipes (2.6%), H. truncatum (1.8%), and A. gemma (1.5%) were identified. R. evertsi evertsi, 107 (27.5%), was with the highest prevalence in the midland. From the lowland, R. pulchellus (22.3%), R. evertsi evertsi (20%), H. truncatum (3.6%), A. gemma (3.1%), B. decoloratus (2.3%), H. marginatum rufipes (2.1%), and A. variegatum (1.5%) were identified. In the lowland, R. pulchellus, 87 (22.3%), was the most abundant tick species. The overall prevalence of tick infestation on horses was significantly (P < 0.05) higher both in the midland, 225 (57.8%), and the lowland, 214 (54.87%), than the highland, 17 (4.4%). This suggests that horses in midland and lowland are at higher risk of tick infestation than those horses in the highland. Further studies on the role of ticks in transmission of diseases to equines and the importance of horses as alternative hosts in different parts of Ethiopia are needed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Parasitology, School of Veterinary Medicine, College of Health Sciences, Addis Ababa University, P.O. Box 34, Bishoftu, Ethiopia

    Bersissa Kumsa & Habtamu Tamrat

  2. Department of Biomedical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, College of Health Sciences, Addis Ababa University, P.O. Box 34, Bishoftu, Ethiopia

    Getachew Tadesse

  3. Society for the Protection of Animals Abroad (SPANA), School of Veterinary Medicine, College of Health Sciences, Addis Ababa University, P.O. Box 34, Bishoftu, Ethiopia

    Nigatu Aklilu

  4. Department of Experimental Veterinary Sciences, University of Padova, Viale dell’Università, 16, 35020, Legnaro, Padua, Italy

    Bersissa Kumsa & Rudi Cassini

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  1. Bersissa Kumsa
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  2. Habtamu Tamrat
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  4. Nigatu Aklilu
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Correspondence to Bersissa Kumsa.

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Kumsa, B., Tamrat, H., Tadesse, G. et al. Prevalence and species composition of ixodid ticks infesting horses in three agroecologies in central Oromia, Ethiopia. Trop Anim Health Prod 44, 119–124 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-011-9897-y

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