Detection and analysis of Babesia species from ticks recovered from dogs in Japan were attempted by PCR and nucleotide sequence analysis based on the 18S rRNA gene, respectively. A total of 1,136 ticks were examined for Babesia DNA by 18S rRNA-based PCR and nucleotide sequencing. Partial sequences of Babesia canis vogeli DNA were detected from six ticks in Aomori, Nara, Hiroshima, Oita, and Okinawa Prefectures; and Babesia gibsoni Asia-1 DNA was also detected in four ticks in Osaka, Hiroshima, Miyazaki, and Okinawa Prefectures. Unique sequences of 1,678 bp were also obtained from Ixodes ovatus ticks in Akita and Fukui Prefectures. The sequences were similar to those of Babesia odocoilei (97.7%) and Babesia divergens (97.6%). This is the first report of the detection of DNA belonging to this group in Japan.Animals are often exposed to a large number of tick species, depending upon the distribution of these arthropod vectors in the environment. Recently, interest in ticks of domestic animals has been increasing because of emerging and reemerging tick-borne diseases, including those caused by rickettsial, bacterial, and protozoal pathogens, and their zoonotic nature. Ixodid tick species from canine hosts in Japan were documented in a recent report (19). The tick species of canine hosts in Japan showed more variation than the tick species of canine hosts in European countries. Haemaphysalis longicornis was the species most frequently found. This was followed by Hamaphysalis flava, Rhipicephalus sanguineus, and Ixodes ovatus as the next most dominant tick species. As dogs are in close contact with humans,

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