Ecology of ticks in a taxocenosis of snakes from the Serra do Mendanha, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with new host records

Pontes, Jorge Antônio Lourenço; Vrcibradic, Davor; Rocha, Carlos Frederico Duarte

doi:10.1590/s1984-46702009000200016

Cited by 9 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…These results may have been influenced by the fact that snakes captured in the field sometimes spend several weeks in regional serpentaria and only later are sent to the Institute Vital Brazil, by which time ticks may have detached. However, the rare field studies that exist report that only a few individual snakes are parasitized by ticks in nature (Pontes et al ., ; Viana et al ., ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Microorganisms in the ticks Amblyomma dissimile Koch 1844 and Amblyomma rotundatum Koch 1844 collected from snakes in Brazil

Ogrzewalska

Machado

Rozental

et al. 2018

Medical Vet Entomology

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Knowledge about ticks (Acari) and screening of ticks parasitizing various hosts are necessary to understand the epidemiology of tick‐borne pathogens. The objective of this study was to investigate tick infestations on snakes (Reptilia: Squamata: Serpentes) arriving at the serpentarium at the Institute Vital Brazil, Rio de Janeiro. Some of the identified ticks were individually tested for the presence of bacteria of the genera Rickettsia (Rickettsiales: Rickettsiaceae), Borrelia (Spirochaetales: Spirochaetaceae), Coxiella (Legionellales: Coxiellaceae), Bartonella (Rhizobiales: Bartonellaceae), Ehrlichia (Rickettsiales: Anaplasmataceae), Anaplasma (Rickettsiales: Anaplasmataceae), and Apicomplexa protozoa of the genera Babesia (Piroplasmida: Babesiidae) and Hepatozoon (Eucoccidiorida: Hepatozoidae). A total of 115 hard ticks (Ixodida: Ixodidae) were collected from 17 host individuals obtained from four Brazilian states. Two species of tick were identified: Amblyomma dissimile Koch 1844 (four larvae, 16 nymphs, 40 adults), and Amblyomma rotundatum Koch 1844 (12 nymphs, 43 adults). Rickettsia bellii was found in A. rotundatum and A. dissimile ticks and Rickettsia sp. strain Colombianensi, Anaplasma‐like and Hepatozoon sp. in A. dissimile ticks. Among the tested ticks, no DNA of Borrelia, Bartonella, Coxiella or Babesia was found. The present findings extend the geographic range of Rickettsia sp. strain Colombianensi in Brazil and provide novel tick–host associations.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Microorganisms in the ticks Amblyomma dissimile Koch 1844 and Amblyomma rotundatum Koch 1844 collected from snakes in Brazil

Ogrzewalska

Machado

Rozental

et al. 2018

Medical Vet Entomology

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“…Amblyomma rotundatum Koch is a parthenogenetic tick (ARAGÃO, 1912;OBA;SCHUMAKER, 1983) commonly associated with species of reptiles and amphibians (DURDEN;KNAPP, 2005;PONTES et al, 2009;GUGLIELMONE;NAVA, 2010). Experimental studies have shown that during its life cycle, this species uses two or three different host species (OBA;SCHUMAKER, 1983;RODRIGUES et al, 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In Brazil, except for the broad study by Pontes et al (2009) involving ticks associated with a community of snakes in the Atlantic Forest, most studies have been limited to recording parasitism of reptiles by ticks in random samples, usually restricted to a few individual specimens (LABRUNA et al, 2002(LABRUNA et al, , 2005DANTAS-TORRES et al, 2005MARTINS et al, 2007;LOPES et al, 2010), studies involving captive hosts (see review in GUGLIELMONE; NAVA, 2010), or characterization of the life cycle of ticks Amblyomma dissimile or A. rotundatum under experimental conditions (ARAGÃO, 1912;OBA;SCHUMAKER 1983;FREITAS et al, 2004;RODRIGUES et al, 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

New host records for Amblyomma rotundatum (Acari: Ixodidae) from Grussaí restinga, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Viana

Winck

Almeida-Santos

et al. 2012

Rev. Bras. Parasitol. Vet.

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Amblyomma rotundatum Koch is a parthenogenetic tick usually associated with reptiles and amphibians. However, relatively few studies on occurrences of ticks in wild reptile populations in Brazil have been produced. The aim of this study was to analyze the presence of ticks associated with reptile species in the Grussaí restinga, in the municipality of São João da Barra, state of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Between December 2010 and January 2011, 131 individuals belonging to nine species of reptiles of the order Squamata were sampled: the lizards Tropidurus torquatus (n = 51), Hemidactylus mabouia (n = 25), Mabuya agilis (n = 30), Mabuya macrorhyncha (n = 6), Cnemidophorus littoralis (n = 5) and Ameiva ameiva (n = 10); and the snakes Philodryas olfersii (n = 2), Oxyrhopus rhombifer (n = 1) and Micrurus corallinus (n = 1). The only tick species found to be associated with any of the reptiles sampled was A. rotundatum. One adult female was detected on one individual of the lizard A. ameiva, one nymph on one individual of the lizard T. torquatus and four nymphs on one individual of the snake P. olfersii. This study is the first record of parasitism of A. rotundatum involving the reptiles T. torquatus and P. olfersii as hosts. Our results suggest that in the Grussaí restinga habitat, A. rotundatum may use different species of reptiles to complete its life cycle.

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“…This tick has been reported to be a parasite of A. ameiva (ONOFRIO, 2007), but data about the location were not reported. According to Pontes et al (2009), data on A. dissimile The lizard A. ameiva inhabits a range of ecosystems and is abundant in natural and anthropogenic areas (VITT; COLLI, 1994). Thus, it represents a potential host for ticks of the genus Amblyomma.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This tick has been reported to be a parasite of A. ameiva (ONOFRIO, 2007), but data about the location were not reported. According to Pontes et al (2009), data on A. dissimile ISSN 0103-846X (impresso) / ISSN 1984-2961 Review Article Research Note v. 19, n. 4, out.-dez. 2010 A first record of Amblyomma Dissimile (Acari: Ixodidae) parasitizing the lizard Ameiva Ameiva (Teiidae) in Brazil 263…”

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confidence: 99%

A first record of Amblyomma dissimile (Acari: Ixodidae) parasitizing the lizard Ameiva ameiva (Teiidae) in Brazil

Lopes

Andrade

Costa-Júnior

2010

Rev. Bras. Parasitol. Vet.

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A non-engorged adult female Amblyomma dissimile and two Amblyomma sp. larvae were found parasitizing the lizard Ameiva ameiva in the municipality of Chapadinha, State of Maranhão. This is the first record in the state of Maranhão and fills a gap in the distribution of A. dissimile in Brazil. The lizard A. ameiva represents a new host for A. dissimile, and also the first record of this tick species infesting lizards of the family Teiidae in Brazil.Keywords: Amblyomma dissimile, tick, Teiidae, Ameiva ameiva, Brazil. Amblyomma dissimile Koch 1844 is an ectoparasite commonly found on amphibians and reptiles. This parasite is widely distributed across several countries in the Americas, including some states in Brazil (Acre, Amazonas, Pará, Roraima, Pernambuco, Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso, and São Paulo) (ARAGÃO, 1936;SCHUMAKER;BARROS, 1994;ONOFRIO, 2007;DANTAS-TORRES et al., 2008). Records of natural tick infestation of lizards in Brazil are rare because most published reports available in the literature on parasitism focus on either snakes or on laboratory experiments (SCHUMAKER; BARROS, 1994;FREITAS et al., 2004). At present, only two species of lizards have been reported to be infested by A. dissimile in Brazil, namely, adults from Iguana iguana (FREITAS et al., 2004) and nymphs from Tropidurus hispidus (DANTAS-TORRES et al., 2008). ResumoThe teiid lizard Ameiva ameiva is widely distributed in the Neotropics, occurring from Panama to central Brazil (SCHWARTZ; HENDERSON, 1991 apud SARTORIUS et al., 1999. This species of lizard inhabits areas ranging from the Amazonian rain forest to the savanna of Cerrado and the semi-arid region of Caatinga (VITT; COLLI, 1994). Even as a medium-sized lizard, it has fast movements and is an active forager that feeds on a variety of arthropods and vertebrates (VITT; COLLI, 1994). The objective of this study is to report the occurrence of A. dissimile parasitizing the lizard A. ameiva in the state of Maranhão, Northeastern Brazil.A specimen of A. ameiva was collected in an area of Cerrado belonging to the Universidade Federal do Maranhão (05° 44' S and 43° 10' W) in the municipality of Chapadinha, Maranhão. The lizard was visually examined for the presence of ectoparasites (Figure 1a). An engorged adult female tick and two larvae were found, collected manually and preserved in identified bottles containing 70% ethanol. The ticks were analyzed and identified with the aid of a stereomicroscope and according to the dichotomous keys of Aragão e Fonseca (1961) and Onofrio et al. (2006). The adult tick was identified as A. dissimile (Figure 1b) and the two larvae as Amblyomma sp.Most of the studies on infestations of reptiles in Brazil concern the Amblyomma rotundatum, another parasite of "cold-blooded" animals that is well established in the country (ONOFRIO et al., 2006). This tick has been reported to be a parasite of A. ameiva (ONOFRIO, 2007), but data about the location were not reported. According to Pontes et al. (2009), data on A. dissimile ISSN 0103-846X (impresso) / ...

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Ecology of ticks in a taxocenosis of snakes from the Serra do Mendanha, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with new host records

Cited by 9 publications

References 23 publications

Microorganisms in the ticks Amblyomma dissimile Koch 1844 and Amblyomma rotundatum Koch 1844 collected from snakes in Brazil

Microorganisms in the ticks Amblyomma dissimile Koch 1844 and Amblyomma rotundatum Koch 1844 collected from snakes in Brazil

New host records for Amblyomma rotundatum (Acari: Ixodidae) from Grussaí restinga, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

A first record of Amblyomma dissimile (Acari: Ixodidae) parasitizing the lizard Ameiva ameiva (Teiidae) in Brazil

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