A survey of the ixodid ticks parasitising cattle in the Eastern province of Zambia

Abstract

The results of tick surveys carried out in the Eastern province of Zambia between December 1982 and February 1996 were principally in agreement with the findings of earlier surveys conducted during the period 1965-72. Boophilus decoloratus has almost been replaced by Boophilus microplus. Hyalomma truncatum was found in small numbers throughout the province and Hyalomma marginatum rufipes was only rarely encountered in collections made from cattle. Rhipicephalus evertsi evertsi was largely confined to the southern part of the plateau and the valleys of the Zambezi tributaries. The main difference between the present survey and the previous one concerns the status of Rhipicephalus appendiculatus. This species is currently expanding its range in a westward direction, whereas it was virtually absent from the southern part of the province during the period 1965-72. The majority of specimens collected are morphologically intermediate between R. appendiculatus and the closely allied Rhipicephalus zambeziensis. The available evidence indicates that R. zambeziensis (sensu stricto) is absent from the province. The phenology of R. appendiculatus is aberrant in the province: at lower altitudes a second generation of adult ticks is recorded on the hosts at the start of the dry season.