Seasonal Variation of Ticks on Cattle in Burkina Faso

Abstract

Cattle of the Sahel Zebu peuhl breed from traditionally managed livestock herds in a representative area of north soudanese savana (with 400-900 mm of rainfall/year from May to September) located in the central land of Burkina Faso, were monitored over 12 months for tick and blood parasite. Two species of ticks were found: Amblyomma variegatum and Hyalomma marginatum rufipes. H. m. rufipes was found on cattle all year round with a highest infestation rate in June characterized by means of 10 +/- 4.72 male and 3 +/- 2.43 female ticks per animal. A variegatum appeared on cattle at the beginning of the rainy season in May and quickly reached its highest infestation rate in June with means of 36 +/- 3.67 male and 16 +/- 1.54 female ticks per animal. Thereafter, the infestation rate progressively decreased to reach almost zero in October at the end of the rainy season. There were three preferred body sites for attachment: the axilla area, the area of the scrotum or the udder and the teats depending on the sex of the animal, and the anal area. No blood parasites were found in blood smears. However, a higher prevalence rate of dermatophilosis was noticed on highly infested animals during the rainy season as well as wounds on teats leading to decreased milk production and feeding of calves. Effort should be done to fight against ticks of Amblyomma genus at the period of the year where they are most numerous. Manual removal of ticks could be practiced, making certain to completely detach all mouthparts of the ticks. Complete removal of ticks will avoid wounds and secondary bacterial infections as well as myiasis. During the period of highest prevalence, the rainy season, acaricides could be applied on animal either by dipping the animals or spraying on the predilection sites of the ticks which are the axilla, the scrotum or the udder and the teats, depending on the gender of the animal, and around the anus.

Preliminary Study on Ixodid Ticks Population of the Gaongho Pastoral Area in Burkina Faso, West Africa

“…All ticks collected during the dry season were taken at the tail and anogenital region. This confirms the observations made earlier by Kaboré et al, (1998) reported that these are the body areas predilections for ticks during this period of the year. This study also revealed that the level of tick infestation is not related to the sex of the animal.…”

“…According to the host species, the most dominant genus in cattle were in order Amblyomma and Hyalomma against Hyalomma and Rhipicephalus in sheep and Rhipicephalus and Hyalomma in goats. Hyalomma and Amblyomma genus were also observed by Kaboré et al, (1998) in cattle in northern Sudan zone in Burkina Faso and Farougou et al, (2007) in sheep in Benin.…”

Community structure, seasonal variations and interactions between native and invasive cattle tick species in Benin and Burkina Faso

“…In Central Burkina Faso (area #4), sample collection took place in Fada N’gourma (4 F; N 12.05; E 0.35), Kikideni (4 K; N 11.9167; E 0.3833), Loumbila (4 L; N 12.5167; W 1.35) and Zagtouli (4Z; N 12.3167; W 1.6333). Stars indicate the localities where tick abundance on cattle was studied before the arrival of R. microplus (one locality from area #4 in 1996 [ 7 ]; two localities in the east of area #2 between 2003 and 2004 [ 9 ] and two localities in the west of area #2 between 2004 and 2005 [ 8 ]) …”

“…The variations in tick biodiversity and abundance on domestic ruminants have been poorly studied in West Africa, with the exception of few surveys performed in Benin or Burkina Faso [ 7 – 11 ]. These studies showed that Amblyomma variegatum , a three-host tick that infests cattle and small ruminants, was the native species responsible for the highest economic costs.…”

“…Three native species of the Boophilus subgenus ( R. annulatus , R. decoloratus and R. geigyi) transmit Babesia bigemina (the agent of African redwater) and Anaplasma marginale in this region [ 15 , 16 ]. Seven other native species, of little veterinary health concern, were also recorded in these studies: three Hyalomma species ( H. impressum , H. marginatum rufipes and H. truncatum ) and four other Rhipicephalus species ( R. muhsamae , R. sanguineus, R. senegalensis and R. sulcatus ) [ 7 – 9 ]. These surveys also highlighted geographical variations in the predominant species: A. variegatum and H. marginatum rufipes were the only species found on cattle in Central Burkina Faso [ 7 ], while A. variegatum and R. geigyi represented between 70 and 99 % of the ticks infesting cattle in North Benin [ 8 , 9 ].…”