Ticks and Tick-Borne Diseases of Livestock Belonging to Resource-poor Farmers in the Eastern Free State of South Africa

Abstract

The paper provides a summary of three studies conducted in the eastern Free State of South Africa between 1998 and 2000. In a questionnaire-based study approximately 21% of interviewed resource-poor farmers (n = 150) indicated that they experienced problems with ticks and tick-borne diseases. About 56% of farmers indicated that tick-related problems were most severe in summer, while 32% indicated that the most problems were encountered in winter. About 12% indicated that the tick problems were experienced throughout the year. Farmers also indicated that the highest tick burdens were experienced between spring and early winter. The principal ticks infesting cattle (n = 30) were found to be Boophilus decoloratus (53.1%). Rhipicephalus evertsi evertsi (44.7%), Rhipicephalus follis (1.0%), Rhipicephalus gertrudae (0.7%) and Rhipicephalus warburtoni (0.4%). On small stock (n = 188), R. evertsi evertsi (68%) and B. decoloratus (32%) were recorded as the main ticks in the study area. A sero-epidemiological survey of cattle (n = 386) showed that 94% of cattle were seropositive for Babesia bigentina by IFAT, while 87% were sero-positive for Anaplasma by indirect ELISA. All the animals were sero-negative for Babesia bovis and this is probably because the tick vector, Boophilus microplus, is not present in the study area. All sheep and goats were sero-positive for Theileria species by IFAT while 85% of sheep and 100% of goats tested positive for Anaplasma species by competition inhibition ELISA. The high incidence of positive serological results for B. bigemina and Anaplasma in cattle, and Theileria and Anaplasma in sheep and goats and the absence of clinical cases would indicate that this area is endemically stable for these diseases.

One Health profile of a community at the wildlife-domestic animal interface, Mpumalanga, South Africa

“…In this region, tick-borne diseases of cattle, including babesiosis, anaplasmosis, and heartwater, are prevalent (Masika et al, 1997;Rikhotso et al, 2005). The economic impact of ticks and tick-borne diseases is great and can be expressed in terms of mortality, production loss, cost of control, and, in some cases, movement restrictions of animals (Mbati et al, 2002). In addition, specific cattle ticks (Amblyomma hebraeum) can carry African tick bite fever, the most prevalent rickettsial disease in South Africa among humans (Frean et al, 2008).…”

Seroprevalence of IgG antibodies against Anaplasma marginale in cattle from south Mozambique

“…In Zambia, the prevalence of A. marginale demonstrated by ELISA was 85.7, 85.9, 84.7 and 75.0% in provinces located at Western, Central, Eastern and Southern areas of the country, respectively (JONGEJAN et al, 1988). In addition, several studies in South Africa using ELISA as the diagnostic test reported seropositive rates for bovine anaplasmosis ranging from 87 to 100% (DREYER et al.1998;MBATI et al, 2002;MTSHALI et al, 2004;MTSHALI et al, 2007;NDOU et al, 2010).…”

Ticks and Tick-Borne Pathogens From Wildlife in the Free State Province, South Africa

“…Rhipicephalus (B.) microplus, the vector of B. bigemina, the agent of African redwater, and the only known vector of the more virulent B. bovis responsible for Asiatic redwater in South Africa (De Vos and Potgieter, 1994;Tønne-sen et al, 2004), was not previously detected in the Free State Province (Dreyer et al, 1998;Mbati et al, 2002;Mtshali et al, 2004) even though antibodies to B. bovis were reported in cattle (Dreyer et al, 1998). In the present study, eight R.…”