A study of tick fauna in Tandoureh National Park, Khorasan Razavi province, Iran

Abstract

A survey was conducted out to investigate the species composition and abundance of hard ticks in Tandoureh National Park, Iran. A total of 537 ticks were collected by drag-sampling the vegetation in different regions of the park during the seasons of tick activity from 2007 to 2009. Six species were identified, namely Dermacentor niveus (47.2%), Rhipicephalus turanicus (32.9%), Dermacentor raskemensis (8.6%), Hyalomma turanicum (5.6%), Haemaphysalis sulcata (3%) and Hyalomma aegyptium (2.6%). Based on our results D. niveus and R. turanicus were the predominant species collected by dragging in this area. Maximum adult activity was observed from May to June and the least number of ticks were collected in September. Ticks were significantly more numerous on the hillsides where moisture levels were relatively higher. More studies need to be done on ticks, especially on such dominant in Tandoureh National Park species as D. niveus and R. turanicus, in order to understand their possible role in transmission of various pathogens.