First report of Ixodes loricatus in gray four-eyed opossum

Rev. Ibero-Latinoam. Parasitol. (2011); 70 (2): 225-227
Comunicaciones
First report of Ixodes loricatus in gray four-eyed
opossum (Philander opossum) in the Plateau
Region of Santa Catarina, Brazil
QUADROS R. M.1, LAVINA M. S.2, MAZZOLLI M.1, POZENATO G. S.1, VERONESI W. R.1,
CARNEIRO JÚNIOR J. A.1 y MARQUES, S. M. T.3
1
2
3
Universidade do Planalto Catarinense, Lages, Santa Catarina, Brasil.
Centro de Ciências Agroveterinárias - Universidade do Estado de Santa Catarina, Lages, Brasil.
Faculdade de Veterinária, Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil.
ABSTRACT
Ixodes loricatus is a neotropical tick found from Mexico to Argentina and in several Brazilian states.
Wild rodents serve as hosts for larvae and nymphs, whereas big-eared opossum (Didelphis aurita), whiteeared opossum (D. albiventris), gray four-eyed opossum (Philander opossum), and southern red-sided
opossum (Monodelphis sorex) are parasitized by adult forms. The aim of the present study was to provide
the first report of genus Ixodes in the state of Santa Catarina, describing the case of a gray four-eyed
opossum (Philander opossum) infected by Ixodes loricatus in the Plateau Region of this Brazilian state.
Key words: Ixodes loricatus, gray four-eyed opossum, marsupial, first report, Brazil.
RESUMEN
Ixodes loricatus es una garrapata neotropical con distribución desde México hasta Argentina y
en varias provincias brasileñas. Los hospederos para larvas y ninfas son los roedores silvestres y para
adultos, comadrejas (Didelphis aurita y D. albiventris), zorro cuatro ojos (Philander opossum) y colicortos
(Monodelphis sorex). El objetivo del presente estudio fue relatar por vez primera la ocurrencia del género
Ixodes en la provincia de Santa Catarina, relatando el parasitismo por Ixodes loricatus en zorro cuatro ojos
(Philander opossum) en la región del Altiplano Serrano, Santa Catarina, Brasil.
Palabras clave: Ixodes loricatus, zorro cuatro ojos, marsupial, primer relato, Brasil.
Received: 18 July 2011. Accepted: 12 November 2011.
Corresponding: S. M. T. Marques, Faculdade de Veterinária, UFRGS. Av. Bento Gonçalves, 9090, Porto Alegre, Rio
Grande do Sul, Brasil.
CEP: 91540-000 Tel: + 55 51 33086136; Fax: + 55 51 3308 7305
E-mail: [email protected]
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R. M. QUADROS et al.
INTRODUCTION
The genus Ixodes contains approximately 240
species worldwide. Forty-six species are found in
the neotropical region, and 38 of these are exclusive to this region (Barros-Battesti et al, 2006). In
Brazil, 54 tick species are known, which include
33 ticks of the genus Amblyomma, 10 of the genus Ixodes and 10 of other genera. All of them are
largely important, either because of blood spoliation or because of their pathogenicity (Guimarães
et al, 2001).
Ixodes loricatus Neumann, 1899 is a neotropical species found from Mexico to Argentina. In
Brazil, it has been identified in the states of Goiás,
Rio de Janeiro, São Paulo, Paraná, and Rio Grande
do Sul. Their larvae and nymphs feed on wild rodents, whereas the adult forms infest big-eared
opossum (Didelphis aurita), white-eared opossum
(D. albiventris), gray four-eyed opossum (Philander opossum), and southern red-sided opossum
(Monodelphis sorex) (Barros-Battesti and Knysak,
1999, Barros-Battest et al, 2006). In the immature
stage, I. loricatus parasitizes rodents while adults
parasitize marsupials. Some species can parasitize
several mammals or birds during their different developmental stages; other species show higher host
specificity, depending on their biological stage.
Species of the genus Philander, most commonly
known as gray four-eyed opossums, are found only
in the New World, distributed from Central America to southern South America (Eisemberg and Redford, 1999).
Figure 1. Ventral region of I. loricatus.
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The genus Philander prefers moist forests
(Eisemberg and Redford, 1999, Castro-Arellano
et al, 2000). In the state of Santa Catarina, it has
been found mainly in the Dense Ombrophilous Forest (Cherem et al, 2004), but recent studies have
shown that it also occurs in the Deciduous Seasonal
Forest of the Chapecó River, in western Santa Catarina and in the araucaria forest in the Plateau Region of the same state (Cherem et al, 2008).
The purpose of this study was to report the
occurrence of Ixodes in the state of Santa Catarina,
describing the case of a gray four-eyed opossum
(Philander opossum) infected by Ixodes loricatus
in the Plateau Region of Santa Catarina, Brazil.
CASE REPORT
The female tick was collected, in August 2009,
from a gray four-eyed opossum which had died
after falling into a fish pond at the Advanced Research Center, which belongs to the Brazilian Environmental Protection Agency (IBAMA) and is
located in Painel (27º55’44’’ S and 50º06’18’’ W),
in the mountain mesoregion and in the grasslands
in the microregion of Lages, in the state of Santa
Catarina. The material was sent for analysis to the
Laboratory of Parasitology and Parasitic Diseases
at the Center for Agricultural and Veterinary Sciences.
The dichotomous key proposed by BarrosBattesti et al, (2006) was used for the identification
of the female tick. The comparison of the specimens
Figure 2. Dorsal region of I. loricatus.
Rev. Ibero-Latinoam. Parasitol. (2011); 70 (2): 225-227
FIRST REPORT OF IXODES LORICATUS IN GRAY FOUR-EYED OPOSSUM
with the information provided by the key about
adult ticks of the genus Ixodes found in Brazil,
following Onofrio (2003), led to the identification
of Ixodes loricatus (Figures 1 and 2). This species
is characterized by the following features: short
external spur on coxa I smaller than the internal
one, with a slightly rounded tip that does not extend
past coxa II; absence of lobes at the ventral base
of the gnathosoma and hypostome with clearly
defined denticles (Barros-Battesti et al, 2006).
A survey of ixodid ticks conducted by Souza et
al, (1999) in dogs from 10 municipalities from the
microregion of the state of Santa Catarina identified
A. aureolatum, A. tigrinum, R. sanguineus and R.
(B.) microplus, whereas in Lages, the authors found
A. aureolatum, A. tigrinum and R. (B.) microplus.
Examining 30 Didelphis albiventris specimens for
the identification of ixodid ticks, in Pelotas and its
neighboring regions, in the state of Rio Grande do
Sul, Antunes et al, (2005) found that 36.7% of the
animals were infested by I. loricatus, with predominance of adult forms, and also by Amblyomma
aureolatum (3.3%) and by Amblyomma sp. (6.7%).
Miziara et al, (2008) were the first to report the
infection of Didelphis albiventris by Ixodes
loricatus in Campo Grande, state of Mato Grosso
do Sul, Brazil.
From October 2005 to October 2007, rodents
(Akodon cursor, Oligoryzomys nigripes, Rattus
norvergicus, Rattus rattus, Guerlinguetus ingrami,
and Sphigurus villosus) and marsupials (Didelphis aurita, Marmosops incanus, Micoureus paraguayanus, Metachirus nudicaudatus, Monodelphis
americana and Philander frenatus) were captured
from the Pedra Branca State Park, in Rio de Janeiro, and screened for ectoparasites. The following
ixodid ticks were identified: Amblyomma geayi, A.
longirostre, A. scutatum, Amblyomma spp, Ixodes
amarali, I. auritulus, I. didelphidis, I. loricatus, I.
luciae and Ixodes spp. Ixodes loricatus turned out
to be the most prevalent species (Amaral, 2008).
This study is the first report of the genus Ixodes
in Santa Catarina, describing the infection of gray
four-eyed opossum (Philander opossum) by Ixodes
Rev. Ibero-Latinoam. Parasitol. (2011); 70 (2): 225-227
loricatus in the Plateau Region of Santa Catarina,
Brazil.
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