Occurrence and distribution of Ambylomma americanum as determined by passive surveillance in Ontario, Canada (1999-2016)
- PMID: 30337263
- DOI: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2018.10.001
Occurrence and distribution of Ambylomma americanum as determined by passive surveillance in Ontario, Canada (1999-2016)
Abstract
The lone star tick, Amblyomma americanum, is spreading northward from its historical stronghold in the southeastern United States. As a vector and biting pest, public and veterinary health officials must remain vigilant of the lone star tick's expanding range. We use ticks submitted to Public Health Ontario Laboratory (1999-2016) to describe the spatial and temporal dynamics of A. americanum in Ontario, Canada, as well as submitter demographics. We identified 847 A. americanum submissions during the surveillance period, with 773 (91.3%) non-travel-related and 74 (8.7%) travel-related submissions. Annual A. americanum submissions increased over the surveillance period. Approximately 91% of non-travel-related submissions were adult ticks and 9% were nymphs. The highest submission rates were from individuals living in the Eastern and South West regions of the province. Adult specimens were primarily submitted from May through July and nymphs from March through September. Higher numbers of submissions were from young children (<10 years) and older adults (55-74 years), with equal proportions of male and female submitters. The majority of travel-related submissions were from travellers returning from the southeastern United States (i.e., Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas). Amblyomma americanum distribution is scattered in Ontario and submissions are likely the consequence of ongoing detection of adventive specimens. Further tick dragging is required to confirm the presence of established lone star tick populations in the province. Given the relatively rapid expansion of blacklegged ticks, Ixodes scapularis, populations in Ontario, we expect climate change to facilitate the range of expansion of A. americanum into the province. We propose an algorithm for identifying A. americanum-risk areas, which will aid public and veterinary health officials when assessing the risks posed by lone star ticks.
Keywords: Adventive; Established; Lone star tick; Passive surveillance; Range; Risk; Vector.
Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier GmbH.. All rights reserved.
Similar articles
-
Tick infestations of wildlife and companion animals in Ontario, Canada, with detection of human pathogens in Ixodes scapularis ticks.Ticks Tick Borne Dis. 2019 Jan;10(1):72-76. doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2018.08.018. Epub 2018 Sep 3. Ticks Tick Borne Dis. 2019. PMID: 30206012
-
Ticks from cats in the United States: Patterns of infestation and infection with pathogens.Vet Parasitol. 2018 Jun 15;257:15-20. doi: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2018.05.002. Epub 2018 May 5. Vet Parasitol. 2018. PMID: 29907187
-
Mechanistic movement models to predict geographic range expansions of ticks and tick-borne pathogens: Case studies with Ixodes scapularis and Amblyomma americanum in eastern North America.Ticks Tick Borne Dis. 2023 Jul;14(4):102161. doi: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2023.102161. Epub 2023 Mar 28. Ticks Tick Borne Dis. 2023. PMID: 36996508
-
Effect of Vegetation on the Abundance of Tick Vectors in the Northeastern United States: A Review of the Literature.J Med Entomol. 2021 Nov 9;58(6):2030-2037. doi: 10.1093/jme/tjab098. J Med Entomol. 2021. PMID: 34080018 Review.
-
Range Expansion of Tick Disease Vectors in North America: Implications for Spread of Tick-Borne Disease.Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2018 Mar 9;15(3):478. doi: 10.3390/ijerph15030478. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2018. PMID: 29522469 Free PMC article. Review.
Cited by
-
A framework for adaptive surveillance of emerging tick-borne zoonoses.One Health. 2019 Feb 11;7:100083. doi: 10.1016/j.onehlt.2019.100083. eCollection 2019 Jun. One Health. 2019. PMID: 30809583 Free PMC article. Review.
-
Passive collection of ticks in New Hampshire reveals species-specific patterns of distribution and activity.J Med Entomol. 2023 May 12;60(3):575-589. doi: 10.1093/jme/tjad030. J Med Entomol. 2023. PMID: 37030013 Free PMC article.
-
Analysis of Amblyomma americanum microRNAs in response to Ehrlichia chaffeensis infection and their potential role in vectorial capacity.bioRxiv [Preprint]. 2024 May 6:2024.05.03.592465. doi: 10.1101/2024.05.03.592465. bioRxiv. 2024. Update in: Front Cell Infect Microbiol. 2024 Jul 17;14:1427562. doi: 10.3389/fcimb.2024.1427562 PMID: 38765993 Free PMC article. Updated. Preprint.
-
Tick-borne red meat allergy (α-gal syndrome).CMAJ. 2023 Oct 3;195(38):E1305-E1306. doi: 10.1503/cmaj.231067. CMAJ. 2023. PMID: 37788844 Free PMC article. No abstract available.
-
Allergie à la viande rouge transmise par les tiques (syndrome α-gal).CMAJ. 2024 Jan 28;196(3):E108-E109. doi: 10.1503/cmaj.231067-f. CMAJ. 2024. PMID: 38286489 Free PMC article. French. No abstract available.
MeSH terms
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Research Materials