Hard ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) associated with resident and neotropical migratory wild birds in Colombian tropical rainforests with detection of Rickettsia species

Abstract

The tropical rainforest is one of the most biodiverse, productive, and complex terrestrial biomes in the world. Human-induced environmental changes increase the emergence and spread of vector-borne diseases. Ticks (Acari: Ixodida) are medically and veterinary important arthropods that infest a wide range of vertebrate hosts, including humans, and act as vectors of diverse pathogens, such as bacteria of the genus Rickettsia. The aim of this study was to identify ticks and Rickettsia associated with resident and migratory Neotropical wild birds in tropical rainforests in the Andean region of Colombia. Ticks collected from wild birds were identified morphologically and molecularly, and Rickettsia detection was performed by PCR through the amplification of fragments of the gltA and ompB genes. A total of 189 ticks belonging to seven species of Amblyomma (six species) and Ixodes (one species) were identified, associated with 17 species of resident birds and two species of Neotropical migratory birds. We detected ‘Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae’ in the tick Amblyomma longirostre. We documented Neotropical migratory birds parasitized by ticks during the fall and spring migrations. This information is valuable for understanding bird–tick–Rickettsia associations in the tropical rainforests of Colombia.