First record of the stump-tailed lizard tick, Amblyomma albolimbatum (Ixodida, Ixodidae) parasitising a human

Ticks are haematophagous arthropods that parasitise a wide range of vertebrate hosts. In Australia, there are currently 74 tick species described; 22 tick species have been reported parasitising humans. The stump-tailed lizard tick, Amblyomma albolimbatum, feeds on reptiles, most commonly lizards an...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Ticks and tick-borne diseases 2022-01, Vol.13 (1), p.101873-101873, Article 101873
Main Authors: Egan, Siobhon L., Lettoof, Damian C., Oskam, Charlotte L.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amblyomma
Hosts
Reptile
Tick
Zoonoses
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Summary:Ticks are haematophagous arthropods that parasitise a wide range of vertebrate hosts. In Australia, there are currently 74 tick species described; 22 tick species have been reported parasitising humans. The stump-tailed lizard tick, Amblyomma albolimbatum, feeds on reptiles, most commonly lizards and snakes; however, we report the first case of A. albolimbatum parasitising a human. The nymphal tick was removed while conducting fieldwork on western tiger snakes (Notechis scutatus occidentalis) in an urban city environment near Perth, Western Australia. The tick was identified using morphological descriptions, which was further supported by the abundance of all parasitic stages of A. albolimbatum on the tiger snakes sampled. The number of tick species recorded from humans in Australia is now revised to 23 species. With the increasing incidence of tick-borne illnesses in Australia, this study highlights the need to report cases of new or atypical hosts, particularly humans, and especially when the ticks have been associated with zoonotic pathogens.
ISSN:1877-959X
1877-9603
DOI:10.1016/j.ttbdis.2021.101873