Ixodids in wild animals of the mountainous plateau Region of Santa Catarina State, Brazil

Resumo

Knowledge of ixodids (hard ticks), as of well as their ability to transmit pathogens to their hosts, and in some cases to humans, is significantly important for the establishment of epidemiological public health programs and surveillance. With the purpose of identifying ixodids from wild mammals in the mountainous plateau of Santa Catarina, we examined ticks collected or received in the Laboratory of Parasitology and Parasitic Diseases of the Centre of Agroveterinary Sciences (CAV/UDESC) from 2001 to 2011. The ixodids were collected from wild animals that were subjected to the screening process of the Veterinary Clinic Hospital (HCV) of CAV and from dead animals found on state highways. Using specific dichotomous keys, we identified Amblyomma aureolatum collected from Pseudalopex gymnocercus, Lycalopex gymnocercus, Leoparduspardalis, Cerdocyon thous, Leopardus tigrinus, Puma concolor, and Bufo sp.; A. dubitatum collected from Hydrochoerus hydrochoeris; A. rotundatum from Puma concolor and Bohtrops sp.; A. ovale from Bufo sp.; and Rhipicephalus microplus from Mazama gouazoubira. A specimen of A. longirostre was identified in an urban area house at the municipality of Lages. A. rotundatum that was collected from Bohtrops sp. and Puma concolor, and A. longirostre that was found in the environment, are reported for the first time in the state of Santa Catarina, Brazil.