Ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) on Tropidurus oreadicus Rodrigues, 1987 in Monte Alegre, State of Pará, central-eastern Amazon
2021
Coêlho, Tássio Alves | Vasconcelos-Neto, Lourival Baía de | Ishiguro, Francisco Lazameth | Chalkidis, Hipócratesde Menezes | de Souza, Darlison Chagas
The present study aimed to investigate the infestation of ectoparasites on the lizard Tropidurus oreadicus in the municipality of Monte Alegre, State of Pará, Brazil. A total of 105 specimens of T. oreadicus were collected in rural homes located in an anthropized savannah area. Of these, 21 specimens presented parasitism by Amblyomma dissimile tick nymphs and Amblyomma sp. larvae, with a general prevalence of 20%, mean intensity of 1.71, and mean abundance of 0.34 parasites per host. The analyses indicated a positive correlation between host size and tick abundance, as well as significant differences between lizard sexes and tick prevalence, suggesting that larger individuals (males) may be more susceptible to infestations of these ticks. In addition, other factors such as competition activities for territory and reproduction may affect this susceptibility of tick infestations in males. The sites with the highest number of ticks found were cloaca, folds of the lower limbs, neck, and tympanum, representing environments that provide protection and greater ease for ticks to attach. We present here a new parasite-host relationship between A. dissimile and T. oreadicus, this being the first record of tick infestation for the lizard species.
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