Tick infestation (Acari: Ixodidae) in roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) from northwestern Spain: population dynamics and risk stratification

• Published in: Experimental & applied acarology 2011-04, Vol.53 (4), p.399-409
• Main Authors: Vázquez, Luís, Panadero, Rosario, Dacal, Vicente, Pato, Francisco Javier, López, Ceferino, Díaz, Pablo, Arias, María Sol, Fernández, Gonzalo, Díez-Baños, Pablo, Morrondo, Patrocinio
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acari; Animal and plant ecology; Animal Ecology; Animal Genetics and Genomics; Animal Systematics/Taxonomy/Biogeography; Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Animals; Arachnida; Biological and medical sciences; Biomedical and Life Sciences; Capreolus capreolus; Coastal zone; Deer; Deer - parasitology; Demecology; Dermacentor marginatus; Developmental stages; Entomology; Female; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; General aspects; Geographical distribution; Invertebrates; Ixodes ricinus; Ixodidae; Ixodidae - physiology; Larvae; Life Sciences; Male; Mountain regions; Mountains; Northwestern Spain; Population Density; Population Dynamics; Prevalence; Risk Factors; Risk stratification; Seasons; Spain; Tick Infestations - epidemiology; Tick Infestations - veterinary
• ISSN: 0168-8162; 1572-9702
• DOI: 10.1007/s10493-010-9403-7

During the 2007 and 2008 hunting seasons (April-October) the skin of 367 roe deer (Capreolus capreolus L.), hunted in different preserves from Galicia (Northwestern Spain), were examined for ticks (Acari: Ixodidae). The overall prevalence of infestation by ticks was 83.1%. The predominant species was Ixodes ricinus (83.1%), whereas a single Dermacentor marginatus specimen appeared in one roe deer. All developmental stages of I. ricinus were found parasitizing roe deer, the adults being the most frequent (82.2%), followed by nymphs (45.6%) and larvae (27.2%). The mean intensity of infestation by I. ricinus was 43.2 ± 49.85; most of them were adults (30.7 ± 31.64) and in a lesser extend nymphs (16.9 ± 24.74) and larvae (10.7 ± 29.90). Ixodes ricinus was present all over the study with percentages that oscillated between 100% in spring and 57.4% in autumn. CHAID algorithm showed the sex of roe deer as the most influential factor in tick prevalence, followed by the climatic area. The different developmental stages of I. ricinus were more frequent in males than in females, and the prevalence of adults and larvae were higher in roe deer from coastal areas than in those from mountainous and central areas, whereas nymphs were more frequent in mountainous areas. Host age and density were not determinants for tick infestation. Our results confirm that roe deer are important hosts for I. ricinus in northwestern Spain, serving as a vehicle for the geographic distribution of these ticks.