Prevalence of different tick species on livestock and associated equines and canine from different agro-ecological zones of Pakistan

Abstract

Ticks are ectoparasites that act as vectors for transmission of various pathogens to wild and domesticated animals and pose a serious threat to human health. Because of the hot and humid conditions in different agro-ecological zones of Pakistan, ticks are abundant and parasitize a variety of animals. The aim of this study was to identify different tick species and distribution on different hosts especially livestock, such as sheep, goat, cattle, buffalo, and camel, and livestock associated canines and equines, such as horse, donkey, and dog, across different agro-ecological zones of Pakistan. The ticks samples were collected and morphologically identified at genus and species level using morphological keys under stereomicroscope. A total of 2,846 animals were examined for the tick infestation, and 408 animals were tick-infested. Eleven tick species belonging to 4 genera were identified: Hyalomma anatolicum, Hyalomma scupense, Hyalomma dromedarii, Hyalomma isaaci, Rhipicephalus microplus, Rhipicephalus haemaphysaloides, Rhipicephalus turanicus, Haemaphysalis cornupunctata, Haemaphysalis montgomeryi, Haemaphysalis bispinosa, and Ixodes kashmiricus. The overall tick prevalence was 14.3%; host-wise infestation rate was 12.2% in sheep; 12.6%, goat; 11.7%, buffalo; 11.7%, cattle; 19.6%, camel; 27.4%, donkey; 23.5%, horse; and 24.3%, dog. Tick infestation of different animals differed on the basis of the zones. Camels showed the highest tick infestation rate in zones 1 and 2 (21.4 and 26.7%, respectively), whereas donkeys showed the highest infestation rate in zones 3, 4, 6, and 7 (25, 39.3, 3.3, and 21.4%, respectively). The infestation rates of Hyalomma and Rhipicephalus were the highest in zone 2 (71.4 and 52.9%, respectively). The infestation rate of Hyalomma was the highest (47.4%) in sheep; Haemaphysalis (46.9%), goat; Rhipicephalus (69.7%), buffalo; Rhipicephalus (62.3%), cattle; Hyalomma (70%), camel; Ixodes (60.9%), donkey; Ixodes (75%), horse; and Rhipicephalus (61.1%), dog. This study showed the diversity and infestation rate of different ticks with respect to their hosts and agro-ecological zones of Pakistan. High tick burdens and infestation rates are responsible for the spread of different tick-borne infections, resulting in loss of animal productivity and posing a threat to animal and human health. Understanding different tick species and their distribution across different zones will be helpful for developing efficient control strategies against different tick born infections.

Tick-borne Rickettsia, Anaplasma, Theileria, and enzootic nasal tumor virus in ruminant, PET, and poultry animals in Pakistan

“…It has been reported that about 1 million deaths are observed annually due to tick-borne pathogens (WHO, 2014 ). Ticks are an immense source of spreading zoonotic diseases such as tularemia, tick-borne relapsing fever, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, anaplasmosis, and ehrlichiosis (Bratton and Corey, 2005 ; Hussain N. et al, 2023 ). Developing countries like tropical and subtropical countries are in consensus due to TBDs exerting economic challenges on the worldwide livestock sector.…”

Molecular prevalence, associated risk factors and phylogenetic evaluation of Theileria lestoquardi in the blood samples of small ruminants

“…Despite the importance of small ruminants to the rural economy the production by these animals is not as efficient as it should be [ 5 ]. Due to the subtropical conditions in Pakistan, ticks and associated tick-borne diseases are abundant in domesticated animals, especially in the arid regions of Punjab with higher temperatures and humidity during most part pf the year [ 6 ]. Ticks and their transmitted pathogens cause weight loss, skin damage, mortality and abortion resulting in huge annual economic losses [ 7 ].…”

First Report of Rickettsia conorii in Hyalomma kumari Ticks

“…Moreover, ticks of genus Hyalomma are vectors for the Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF), a serious threat endemic in Pakistan [8]. To date, 27 species of Hyalomma have been identified in Palearctic, Oriental, and African regions [9], of which 13 have been reported in Pakistan [2,[10][11][12][13][14][15]. The genus Hyalomma has been classified into two subgenera, i.e., Euhyalomma and Hyalommina.…”

“…Pakistan has a huge population of small ruminants that consists of approximately 78.2 million goats and 31.2 million sheep [19]. The list of Hyalomma ticks infesting small ruminants in Pakistan includes Hyalomma anatolicum, Hyalomma dromedarii, Hyalomma isaaci, Hyalomma hussaini, Hyalomma scupense, Hyalomma asiaticum, Hyalomma kumari, and Hyalomma turanicum [2,12,13,[20][21][22].…”