A comparison of manual and carbon dioxide trap sampling of Ornithodoros soft ticks from warthog resting sites in South Africa.

IF 3.5 2区医学 Q1 PARASITOLOGY

Parasites & Vectors Pub Date : 2025-07-28 DOI:10.1186/s13071-025-06896-8

Cynthia Mapendere, Armanda D S Bastos, Etter Eric, Livio Heath, Ferran Jori

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Background: In East and Southern Africa, the African swine fever (ASF) virus is maintained in an ancient sylvatic cycle involving warthogs (Phacochoerus spp.) and Ornithodoros soft ticks inhabiting warthog burrows. Although carbon dioxide (CO₂) traps have previously been used to collect ticks from pigsties in Portugal, this method has never been tested in the context of the ASF sylvatic cycle in Africa. As warthogs adapt their resting site preferences in response to different levels of habitat transformation, our study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of CO₂ traps versus traditional manual collection of soft ticks inhabiting two warthog resting sites: warthog burrows (natural) and house decks (anthropogenic).

Methods: The study was performed in Mjejane Game Reserve, a wildlife conservancy adjacent to the Kruger National Park in South Africa. Sixty-one warthog resting sites (31 natural burrows and 30 house decks) were sampled to compare Ornithodoros tick numbers using manual and CO₂ trap methods during wet (summer) and dry (winter) seasons.

Results: The number of ticks collected with CO₂ traps (n = 2024) was significantly higher than those collected with the manual method (n = 885, P < 0.001) for both resting site types. Moreover, the number of ticks collected using CO₂ traps from house decks (n = 1399) was significantly higher (P < 0.001) compared to burrows (n = 625). There were no differences in the number of ticks collected between seasons. Our results suggest that CO₂ traps are highly efficient for collecting Ornithodoros ticks from the two warthog resting site types evaluated in our study area. They also confirm that warthogs can adapt to different levels of habitat transformation and human presence.

Conclusions: The standardised use of the CO₂ trap method facilitates investigations on the distribution of tick-related ASF cycles in sub-Saharan Africa and improves our understanding of the eco-epidemiology of ASF and other Ornithodoros tick-borne diseases.

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南非疣猪休息地点的鸟thodoros软蜱人工取样与二氧化碳捕集器取样比较。

背景：在非洲东部和南部，非洲猪瘟（ASF）病毒维持在一个古老的森林循环中，涉及疣猪（Phacochoerus spp.）和栖息在疣猪洞穴中的Ornithodoros软蜱。尽管二氧化碳捕集器以前曾用于在葡萄牙的猪圈中收集蜱虫，但这种方法从未在非洲非洲猪瘟森林循环的背景下进行过测试。由于疣猪会根据不同程度的栖息地变化而调整其休息地点偏好，本研究旨在评估二氧化碳陷阱与传统人工采集疣猪休息地点（疣猪洞穴（天然）和房屋甲板（人为））软蜱的有效性。方法：本研究在南非克鲁格国家公园附近的野生动物保护区Mjejane Game Reserve进行。在61个疣猪休息地点（31个自然洞穴和30个房屋甲板）取样，采用人工和二氧化碳诱捕法在湿季（夏季）和干季（冬季）比较鸟thodoros蜱虫数量。结果：CO2诱捕器捕获的蜱虫数量（n = 2024）显著高于人工诱捕器（n = 885），房屋甲板上的p2诱捕器（n = 1399）显著高于人工诱捕器（P = 1399）（P = 2诱捕器对研究区两种疣猪休息场所的鸟thodoros蜱虫的捕获效率较高）。他们还证实，疣猪可以适应不同程度的栖息地转变和人类的存在。结论：CO2捕集器方法的标准化使用有助于调查撒哈拉以南非洲地区与蜱相关的非洲猪瘟循环分布，提高我们对非洲猪瘟和其他鸟类蜱传疾病生态流行病学的认识。

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来源期刊

Parasites & Vectors 医学-寄生虫学

CiteScore

6.30

自引率

9.40%

发文量

433

审稿时长

1.4 months

期刊介绍： Parasites & Vectors is an open access, peer-reviewed online journal dealing with the biology of parasites, parasitic diseases, intermediate hosts, vectors and vector-borne pathogens. Manuscripts published in this journal will be available to all worldwide, with no barriers to access, immediately following acceptance. However, authors retain the copyright of their material and may use it, or distribute it, as they wish. Manuscripts on all aspects of the basic and applied biology of parasites, intermediate hosts, vectors and vector-borne pathogens will be considered. In addition to the traditional and well-established areas of science in these fields, we also aim to provide a vehicle for publication of the rapidly developing resources and technology in parasite, intermediate host and vector genomics and their impacts on biological research. We are able to publish large datasets and extensive results, frequently associated with genomic and post-genomic technologies, which are not readily accommodated in traditional journals. Manuscripts addressing broader issues, for example economics, social sciences and global climate change in relation to parasites, vectors and disease control, are also welcomed.