Ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) Parasitizing Red Foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in Slovakia and New Data About Subgenus Pholeoixodes Occurrence

Abstract

Background Distribution and biology of Pholeoixodes ticks is not very well understood. The goal of the study was to collect new data on the Pholeoixodes tick occurrence in Slovakia. Methods Tick infestation of red foxes in the regions of Košice, Prešov, Bratislava and Žilina was studied during the period 2017-2018. Ticks were collected from the fur of animals using tweezers and identified using appropriate keys. In total, 146 red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) were investigated. Results In total, 39 (26.7%) of animals were found to be infected with ticks from five species. Pholeoixodes ticks were found on 13 (3.4%) of the foxes: Ixodes hexagonus (Leach, 1815) on 5 specimens (3.4%), in the Košice, Prešov and Žilina regions; I. crenulatus (Koch, 1844) on 8 specimens (5.5%) in the Prešov and Bratislava regions; Ixodes ricinus (Linnaeus, 1758) collected from 25 (17.2%) foxes in every locality; Dermacentor reticulatus (Fabricius, 1794) from 5 foxes (3.4%) in the Košice, Prešov and Žilina regions; Haemaphysalis concinna (Koch, 1844), from 4 foxes (2.8%) from the Košice region. Conclusions Ixodes hexagonus has been previously recorded in Slovakia. However, this is the first finding of I. crenulatus in the country. The morphological features of the I. crenulatus specimens found in Slovakia were identical to those of ticks described in Poland and descriptions given in identification keys.

Ticks on game animals in the fragmented agricultural landscape of western Poland

“…I. ricinus is widely distributed in Poland and is a known ectoparasite of game animals (Kadulski 1989 ; Dróżdż and Bogdaszewska 1997 ; Fryderyk 2000 ; Bogdaszewska 2005 ; Biaduń et al 2007 ; Adamska 2008 , Dwużnik et al 2019 , Karbowiak et al 2020 ). Until recently, the distribution of D. reticulatus was limited to eastern Poland but many recent reports indicate that the range of this species has shifted to the West, what may be related to climate change and other factors (Nowak 2010 ; Kiewra and Czułowska 2013 ; Karbowiak 2014 ; Karbowiak et al 2020 ). Until recently, the only known localities for H. concinna were in the vicinity of Troszyn village, West Pomerania Province, in north-western part of Poland.…”

“…The need for more information about the distribution and expansion of local tick species has been stressed by many authors (Adamska 2008 ; Doby et al 1994 ). These aspects of tick ecology have widely been studied recently in reference to different groups of hosts, specifically reptiles (Nowak 2010 ), migratory birds (Ciebiera et al 2019 ; Buczek et al 2020 ), and mammals (Sawczuk et al 2005 ; Adamska and Skotarczak 2007 , Wodecka 2007 , Michalik et al 2012 , Karbowiak et al 2020 ). The knowledge of tick occurrence patterns in their natural habitats, their hosts and time of activity in different biotopes is important not only from the ecophysiographic point of view, but also shows global patterns of zoonoses emerging due to global warming.…”

The Red Fox (Vulpes vulpes) as Sentinel for Tick-Borne Encephalitis Virus in Endemic and Non-Endemic Areas

“…In Europe, tick infestation of foxes ranges from 7.4% in Italy [ 39 ] to 51.1–82.6% in Spain [ 40 ] and Germany [ 41 ]. Several tick species of the genera Ixodes, Dermacentor, Haemaphysalis, Hyalomma, and Rhipicephalus are known to parasitize red foxes’ skin [ 39 , 40 , 42 , 43 ]. Of these, three species, I. ricinus , D. reticulatus , and H. concinna , are known to be able to transmit TBEV.…”

Subcutaneous ticks: first report in a golden jackal and further proof for the negativity of non-canid carnivores

“…What is clear at the moment is that so far, with the exception of one human case, all other reports originate from canids, with high local prevalence in red foxes [7,8]. The vast majority of these reports refer to ticks of genus Ixodes (Table 1) but this may also be related to the more common occurrence of these ticks in red foxes [10,11].…”