Detection of Babesia bovis infections in Boophilus geigyi with egg crushings, larval smears, and haemolymph puncture

Abstract

Investigations regarding the detection of Babesia bovis infections in Boophilus geigyi revealed that: (a) By the egg crushing method, Babesia bovis infection in ticks is detected from the 5th day onward and up to the 22nd or 24th day before disappearing. (b) By means of haemolymph puncture, infection could only be noticed from the 5th or 6th day up to the 14th day. (c) Babesia bovis infection can be easily detected from days 1-4 in the larvae of 'infected' ticks. 'Uninfected' ticks which show negative egg infection have been found to produce infected larvae up to day 2, even though the percentage is comparatively low.