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. 2026 Feb 19;52(1-2):26-35.
doi: 10.14745/ccdr.v52i0102a04. eCollection 2026 Feb.

Surveillance for Ixodes scapularis and Ixodes pacificus ticks and their associated pathogens in Canada, 2022

Gamal Wafy  1 , Safa Ahmad  1 , Christy Wilson  1 , Heather Coatsworth  2 , Jade Savage  3 , Mark Nelder  4 , Kirby Cronin  4 , Pauline Zhang  4 , Karine Thivierge  5   6 , Kirsten Crandall  7 , Priya Goundar  8 , Louwrens Snyman  9   10 , Emily Jenkins  9 , Muhammed Morshed  11   12 , Catherine Hogan  11   12 , Min-Kuang Lee  11 , Peter Buck  1 , Annie-Claude Bourgeois  1 , Salima Gasmi  13
Affiliations

Surveillance for Ixodes scapularis and Ixodes pacificus ticks and their associated pathogens in Canada, 2022

Gamal Wafy et al. Can Commun Dis Rep. .

Abstract

Background: This article continues the annual series on tick surveillance in Canada, tracking two of the primary tick vectors of concern in the country, Ixodes scapularis and Ixodes pacificus, which can transmit the agent of Lyme disease alongside several other tick-borne pathogens.

Objective: This study analyzed passive and active tick surveillance data, including geographic distribution, pathogen prevalence and other characteristics to inform public health prevention.

Methods: Passive and active surveillance data were compiled from eTick (an online, image-based platform), the National Microbiology Laboratory (Public Health Agency of Canada), provincial and local public health authorities and the Canadian Lyme Disease Research Network. Descriptive statistics of ticks and their associated pathogens are presented, including infection prevalence estimates.

Results: In 2022, a total of 7,030 I. scapularis were submitted through passive surveillance from all provinces, while 911 I. pacificus were submitted from British Columbia (n=909) and Yukon (n=2). Ixodes scapularis submissions peaked in May and again in October. For I. pacificus, submissions peaked in May with a second, smaller peak in November. Six tick-borne pathogens (Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Borrelia burgdorferi, Borrelia miyamotoi, Babesia microti, Babesia odocoilei, Powassan virus) were identified from the I. scapularis collected by dragging in Manitoba, Ontario, Québec, New Brunswick or Nova Scotia.

Conclusion: This report provides a summary of tick surveillance data collected in 2022. Tick characteristics and tick-borne pathogen infection prevalence were similar to previous years. Tick surveillance continues to play an important role in monitoring infection prevalence among ticks and their geographic distribution, which will help inform public health prevention and intervention efforts.

Keywords: Anaplasma; Babesia; Borrelia; Ixodes pacificus; Ixodes scapularis; Powassan virus; surveillance; ticks.

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Conflict of interest statement

Competing interests None.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Ixodes pacificus and Ixodes scapularis submitted through passive tick surveillance, Canada, 2022a a Each dot represents the probable location of acquisition for an I. pacificus (n=891) or I. scapularis (n=5,307) tick specimen submitted through passive surveillance. There were 20 I. pacificus and 1,723 I. scapularis that had locations that could not be geocoded or did not have any location information (missing data not shown in figure)
Figure 2
Figure 2
Number of Ixodes scapularis and Ixodes pacificus submitted through passive surveillance, by month and life stage, Canada, 2022a,b a Available data are presented for A) I. scapularis (n=5,690) and B) I. pacificus (n=903) ticks submitted through passive surveillance b Month of acquisition and tick life stage data were available for 99.1% of I. pacificus and 80.9% of I. scapularis records (missing data not shown in figure)
Figure 3
Figure 3
Ixodes pacificus or Ixodes scapularis with Anaplasma phagocytophilum or Borrelia burgdorferi collected through active surveillance, Canada, 2022a Abbreviations: A. phagocytophilum; Anaplasma phagocytophilum; B. burgdorferi, Borrelia burgdorferi a Each symbol represents an active surveillance site where A. phagocytophilum (n=59) or B. burgdorferi (n=485) were found in I. pacificus or I. scapularis. There were 56 sites where no pathogens were detected. The inlays zoom in on regions in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia (Inlay 1), Québec and Ontario (Inlay 2) and Ontario (Inlay 3) where these ticks were found close together
Figure 4
Figure 4
Ixodes pacificus or Ixodes scapularis with Powassan virus, Borrelia miyamotoi, Babesia microti or Babesia odocoilei collected through active surveillance, Canada, 2022a Abbreviations: B. microti; Babesia microti; B. miyamotoi, Borrelia miyamotoi; B. odocoilei, Babesia odocoilei; I. pacificus, Ixodes pacificus; I. scapularis, Ixodes scapularis; POW, Powassan virus a Each symbol represents an active surveillance site where POW (Powassan virus) (n=2), B. miyamotoi (n=5), B. microti (n=5) or B. odocoilei (n=211) were found in I. pacificus or I. scapularis. There were 56 sites where no pathogens were detected. The inlays zoom in on regions in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia (Inlay 1), Québec and Ontario (Inlay 2) and Ontario (Inlay 3) where these ticks were found close together
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