[The characteristics of tick species (Acari: Ixodida) transferred on exotic reptiles to Poland]

Abstract

Some natural and unusual transfers of exotic ticks on hosts have been noticed in Poland. Reptiles together with migratory birds and migrating mammals, are the groups of vertebrates that transfer unknown tick species to the territory of Poland. The majority of exotic reptiles brought to Poland for breading and commercial purpose are infested by ticks. Therefore the systematic list of ticks as well as their geographical distribution in the world, tick-host specificity, characteristic and morphological description of genera/species are presented. The described species are as follow: Amblyomma exornatum, Amblyomma flavomaculatum, Amblyomma latum, Amblyomma nuttalli, Amblyomma quadricavum, Amblyomma sphenodonti, Amblyomma transversale, Amblyomma varanense, Hyalomma aegyptium. It is important to monitor occurrence of unknown tick species on hosts in Poland. Ticks parasitizing on reptiles are known as vectors of tick-borne diseases, which indicate a serious epidemic problem, created by the import of exotic reptiles to the territory of Poland.