First report of the tick Hyalomma scupense (natural vector of bovine tropical theileriosis) on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica

Sébastien Grech-Angelini (1) , Frédéric Stachurski (2, 3) , Renaud Lancelot (2, 3) , Jérôme Boissier (4) , Jean-François Allienne (4) , Mohamed Gharbi (5) , Gerrit Uilenberg

1 LRDE - Laboratoire de Recherches sur le Développement de l'Elevage
2 UMR CMAEE - Contrôle des maladies animales exotiques et émergentes
3 Cirad-BIOS - Département Systèmes Biologiques
4 IHPE - Interactions Hôtes-Pathogènes-Environnements
5 UMA - Université de la Manouba [Tunisie]

Hyalomma scupense (Acari, Ixodidae) is a common tick species found in several areas in North Africa, Asia and South Europe and an efficient natural vector of bovine tropical theileriosis (Theileria annulata), a livestock disease with an important economic impact. For one year, 1938 ticks were collected on cattle in several Corsican slaughterhouses; 168 of them were morphologically identified as H. scupense. This result was confirmed by genetic identification using sequences of mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (COI) and ribosomal internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) genes. The presence of 2 different stages (adults and nymphs), collected in various areas of the island, indicates that a population of H. scupense is established in Corsica. However, bovine tropical theileriosis has not been diagnosed on the island so far.

Keywords: Molecular identification; Cattle; Hyalomma scupense; Theileria annulata; Corsica

Domains: Biodiversity and Ecology

Sébastien Grech-Angelini, Frédéric Stachurski, Renaud Lancelot, Jérôme Boissier, Jean-François Allienne, et al.. First report of the tick Hyalomma scupense (natural vector of bovine tropical theileriosis) on the French Mediterranean island of Corsica. Veterinary Parasitology, 2016, 216, pp.33-37. ⟨10.1016/j.vetpar.2015.11.015⟩. ⟨hal-01259543⟩