The first record of steppe field mouse Apodemus witherbyi as a new rodent host infested with ixodid tick species Dermacentor marginatus (Acari: Ixodidae) from Iran

Hard tick species Dermacentor marginatus is frequently reported from the southern parts of Europe to France, Turkey, Syria, Russia and China as well as northern parts of Africa and several localities throughout Iran, and is collected on different mammal’s species including herbivores and carnivores. While immature stages occur on small mammals (usually on red-backed voles of the genus Myodes), adults usually are collected from larger mammals such as canids and ungulates. An adult male sample was collected on the ground in the entrance of a rodent burrow (Apodemus witherbyi) in Dargaz, Razavi Khorasan province in April 2018. The material was preserved in 70% ethanol for identification. The diagnostic characters of the collected material were: length 5 mm; width 3 mm; coxae IV with one spur; spur of coxae I clearly divergent; article II of palp without spur; scutum with broad and length spots; absence of the two spots around the cervical spots; terminal spots reaching to the festoon. The Ixodid tick D. marginatus commonly dwells in plain, shrubbery and broadleaf forests. Herein, the presence of an adult male in a rodent burrow is more likely an indication of a freshly molted individual which has completed the molt in the rodent burrow but haven t left the molting site yet. It could also be misdirected host seeking tick or move into the burrow to escape from the heat. These ticks can transmit some pathogen agents mainly Babesia spp., Borrelia burgdorferi, Coxiella bornuti, Francisella tularensis, Rickettsia slovaca, and Theileria spp. and hence, their diversity and distribution are important for controlling vector-borne diseases.

کلیدواژه ها:

Hard tick ، Dermacentor marginatus ، Ixodidae ، Rodent ، Apodemus witherbyi ، Northeast Iran