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Horst Taraschewski - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Detection of Rickettsia helvetica in ticks collected from European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus, Linnaeus, 1758).
Ticks and tick-borne diseases, 2013Co-Authors: Stephanie Speck, Jasmin Skuballa, Trevor N. Petney, Miriam Pfäffle, Horst Taraschewski, Lea Perseke, Toni Bunnell, Sandra Essbauer, Gerhard DoblerAbstract:The role of wild mammals in the dissemination and maintenance of Rickettsia in nature is still under investigation. European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) are often heavily infested by tick and flea species that are known to harbor and transmit different Rickettsia spp. We investigated ixodid ticks sampled from European hedgehogs for the presence of Rickettsia. A total of 471 Ixodes ricinus and 755 I. hexagonus were collected from 26 German and 7 British European hedgehogs. These were tested by a genus-specific real-time PCR assay targeting the citrate synthase gene (gltA). The rickettsia minimum infection rate was 11.7% with an increase detected with each parasitic tick stage. No significant difference in Rickettsia prevalence in the 2 Ixodes species was detected. Using sequencing of partial ompB, Rickettsia helvetica was the only species identified. More than half of the hedgehogs carried Rickettsia-positive ticks. In addition, tissue samples from 2/5 hedgehogs (where tissue DNA was available) were PCR-positive. These results show that European hedgehogs are exposed to R. helvetica via infected ticks and might be involved in the natural transmission cycle of this Rickettsia species.
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Molecular detection of Anaplasma phagocytophilum in the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) and its ticks.
Vector borne and zoonotic diseases (Larchmont N.Y.), 2010Co-Authors: Jasmin Skuballa, Trevor N. Petney, Miriam Pfäffle, Horst TaraschewskiAbstract:The European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) is a common wild mammal in Central Europe that shares habitats with humans in urban, peri-urban, and rural areas. Thus, this species may play a role in human contact with zoonotic diseases. Here we report the presence of the pathogen Anaplasma phagocytophilum in hedgehogs and their ticks in Germany.
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The avian acanthocephalan Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus (Palaeacanthocephala) parasitizing the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) in Europe and New Zealand
Parasitology Research, 2009Co-Authors: Jasmin Skuballa, Trevor N. Petney, Miriam Pfäffle, Horst Taraschewski, Lesley R. SmalesAbstract:The palaeacanthocephalan Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus is a common intestinal parasite of passerine birds, which can also occur parenterally or in the intestinal tract of mammals, often as an invading species in many countries worldwide. In this survey, introduced hedgehogs ( Erinaceus europaeus , n = 183) killed in New Zealand during a biocontrol campaign and conspecifics ( n = 174) that had died in hedgehog rehabilitation centers in Germany and Britain were examined for this parasite. In New Zealand, P. cylindraceus is recorded for the first time here, in the vicinity of Auckland. In Europe, prevalences ranged from 4.2% up to 47.6%, while in New Zealand, only 1.6% (Auckland 7.9%). Most of the worms occurred inside the peritoneal cavity where they had partly degenerated. Since hedgehogs are seldom preyed upon in continental Europe but often become traffic victims, we hypothesize that the worms inside them, whether extra- or intraperitoneally, contribute to the abundance and persistence of the parasite by being ingested by scavenging birds. Accordingly, we consider P. cylindraceus as a “modern parasite” taking advantage of two aspects of global change: anthropogenic promoted transmission (road kills) and the transcontinental spread of infected intermediate and/or final hosts caused by humans.
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The avian acanthocephalan Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus (Palaeacanthocephala) parasitizing the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) in Europe and New Zealand.
Parasitology research, 2009Co-Authors: Jasmin Skuballa, Trevor N. Petney, Miriam Pfäffle, Horst Taraschewski, Lesley R. SmalesAbstract:The palaeacanthocephalan Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus is a common intestinal parasite of passerine birds, which can also occur parenterally or in the intestinal tract of mammals, often as an invading species in many countries worldwide. In this survey, introduced hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus, n = 183) killed in New Zealand during a biocontrol campaign and conspecifics (n = 174) that had died in hedgehog rehabilitation centers in Germany and Britain were examined for this parasite. In New Zealand, P. cylindraceus is recorded for the first time here, in the vicinity of Auckland. In Europe, prevalences ranged from 4.2% up to 47.6%, while in New Zealand, only 1.6% (Auckland 7.9%). Most of the worms occurred inside the peritoneal cavity where they had partly degenerated. Since hedgehogs are seldom preyed upon in continental Europe but often become traffic victims, we hypothesize that the worms inside them, whether extra- or intraperitoneally, contribute to the abundance and persistence of the parasite by being ingested by scavenging birds. Accordingly, we consider P. cylindraceus as a “modern parasite” taking advantage of two aspects of global change: anthropogenic promoted transmission (road kills) and the transcontinental spread of infected intermediate and/or final hosts caused by humans.
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Tick-induced blood loss leads to regenerative anaemia in the European hedgehog ( Erinaceus europaeus).
Parasitology, 2009Co-Authors: Miriam Pfäffle, Jasmin Skuballa, Trevor N. Petney, M. Elgas, Horst TaraschewskiAbstract:Although there is an increasing understanding of the role of parasites in their host dynamics, accurate, quantitative estimates of parasite caused morbidity in wild animals are rare. Here, we examine the possible impact of 2 tick species (Ixodes ricinus, I. hexagonus) on the condition of the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus). For this, we tested for correlations between blood parameters of 36 adult hedgehogs from an experimental population enclosed in a natural habitat and their tick infestation over a period of 8 months (March-October 2007). We found correlations between the tick infestation and the concentration of red blood cells, haemoglobin, haematocrit, MCH, MCHC, thrombocytes, lymphocytes and neutrophils. These results indicate that ticks can induce anaemia in the hedgehog. The peripheral blood characteristics and the erythrocyte indices characterize this anaemia as haemorrhagic and regenerative. During the course of our study the hedgehogs of our population showed below normal mortality but morbidity was found to be high resulting from the blood loss caused by the feeding activity of the ticks.
Jennifer M. Seddon - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Demographic effects have been more important than selection in shaping patterns of variation at MHC genes in European hedgehogs, Erinaceus europaeus and Erinaceus concolor.
Heredity, 2005Co-Authors: Karin Berggren, Hans Ellegren, Godfrey M. Hewitt, Jennifer M. SeddonAbstract:Demographic effects have been more important than selection in shaping patterns of variation at MHC genes in European hedgehogs, Erinaceus europaeus and Erinaceus concolor.
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dna footprints of european hedgehogs Erinaceus europaeus and e concolor pleistocene refugia postglacial expansion and colonization routes
Molecular Ecology, 2001Co-Authors: Jennifer M. Seddon, F Santucci, N Reeve, G M HewittAbstract:European hedgehogs, Erinaceus europaeus and E. concolor, are among the many European plant and animal taxa that have been subjected to cyclical restriction to glacial refugia and interglacial expansion. An analysis of 95 mitotypes, comprising partial cytochrome b and control region sequences, shows deep divergence between the two hedgehog species. Three europaeus and two concolor clades are clearly identified and are consistent with previously identified refugia for Europe: the Iberian peninsula, Italy, and the Balkans. The degree of mitochondrial divergence among these clades suggests pre-Pleistocene separation of the refugial populations. In contrast, analysis of two nuclear introns clearly separates the two concolor clades, as in the mitochondrial data, but cannot discriminate the three europaeus clades. This discrepancy between nuclear and mitochondrial data is attributed to historical differences in the refugial population size of europaeus and concolor. The geographical distribution of mitotypes is analysed using nested clade analysis. This method, by including unobserved ('missing') mitotypes, can identify mitotype groupings that remain undetected in conventional analyses. However, the application of nested clade analysis to the study of refugial populations may be hampered by such factors as the loss of haplotypes from the refugial areas by repeated contractions of the population and the recent time scale of colonization relative to mutation rate.
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dna footprints of european hedgehogs Erinaceus europaeus and e concolor pleistocene refugia postglacial expansion and colonization routes
Molecular Ecology, 2001Co-Authors: Jennifer M. Seddon, F Santucci, N Reeve, G M HewittAbstract:European hedgehogs, Erinaceus europaeus and E. concolor, are among the many European plant and animal taxa that have been subjected to cyclical restriction to glacial refugia and interglacial expansion. An analysis of 95 mitotypes, comprising partial cytochrome b and control region sequences, shows deep divergence between the two hedgehog species. Three europaeus and two concolor clades are clearly identified and are consistent with previously identified refugia for Europe: the Iberian peninsula, Italy, and the Balkans. The degree of mitochondrial divergence among these clades suggests pre-Pleistocene separation of the refugial populations. In contrast, analysis of two nuclear introns clearly separates the two concolor clades, as in the mitochondrial data, but cannot discriminate the three europaeus clades. This discrepancy between nuclear and mitochondrial data is attributed to historical differences in the refugial population size of europaeus and concolor. The geographical distribution of mitotypes is analysed using nested clade analysis. This method, by including unobserved ('missing') mitotypes, can identify mitotype groupings that remain undetected in conventional analyses. However, the application of nested clade analysis to the study of refugial populations may be hampered by such factors as the loss of haplotypes from the refugial areas by repeated contractions of the population and the recent time scale of colonization relative to mutation rate.
Becki Lawson - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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LISTERIA MONOCYTOGENES INFECTION OF FREE-LIVING WESTERN EUROPEAN HEDGEHOGS (Erinaceus europaeus).
Journal of zoo and wildlife medicine : official publication of the American Association of Zoo Veterinarians, 2019Co-Authors: Helle B. Hydeskov, Shaheed K. Macgregor, Shinto K. John, Andrew A. Cunningham, Corinne Amar, Julia Rodriguez-ramos Fernandez, Becki LawsonAbstract:Listeria monocytogenes is a ubiquitous environmental bacterium that causes disease in a wide range of species. Infection with this pathogen is most frequently diagnosed in ruminant livestock, but is also known to infect people and occasionally wildlife. Postmortem examinations of Western European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) in Great Britain (2011–2017) identified five (5/266, 2%, 95% confidence interval: 0.8–4.3%) animals with L. monocytogenes infection. The L. monocytogenes isolates comprised three serogroup 1/2a and two serogroup 4 from three multilocus sequence types (2, 37, and 121), all of which were different by single-nucleotide polymorphism analysis, indicating they were distinct and epidemiologically unrelated. These findings are consistent with hedgehogs contracting sporadic infection from the environment, perhaps through eating soil-dwelling invertebrates. Examination of data from scanning surveillance programs focused on other British wildlife species indicates that the hedgehog is one of the wildlife species from which L. monocytogenes has been most frequently identified to date in Great Britain. However, further studies of multiple taxa with comparable sampling efforts are required to assess the relative frequency of L. monocytogenes infection in different wildlife species. The bacterium was isolated from extraintestinal sites in multiple hedgehogs, which may indicate septicemia. However, histological examination was limited and could not discriminate subclinical infection from disease (i.e., listeriosis). Although L. monocytogenes is a zoonotic pathogen, disease in people is typically contracted from the ingestion of contaminated foods. The risk to immunocompetent people of contracting listeriosis from hedgehogs is considered very low to negligible.
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Detection and characterisation of multiple herpesviruses in free-living Western European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus)
Scientific Reports, 2018Co-Authors: Helle B. Hydeskov, Andrew A. Cunningham, Akbar Dastjerdi, Kevin P. Hopkins, Marie-pierre Ryser-degiorgis, Frederik Widén, Becki LawsonAbstract:Sporadic cases of herpesvirus-associated disease have been reported in the Western European hedgehog ( Erinaceus europaeus ), but there has been little surveillance for, nor any sequence characterisation of, herpesviruses in this species to date. A nested pan-herpesvirus polymerase chain reaction (PCR) targeting a region of the DNA polymerase gene was used to test 129 Western European hedgehogs from across Great Britain, 2011–2016; 59 (46%) of which were PCR-positive. In addition, samples from two previously published cases of fatal herpesvirus infection in E. europaeus , from Sweden and Switzerland, were positive using this PCR. No statistically significant relationship was detected between PCR result and sex, age class, year or season for the British hedgehogs tested. In most PCR-positive animals (19/22) from which liver and brain were tested separately, both were PCR-positive. Sanger sequencing of amplicons from 59 British hedgehogs revealed at least two novel viruses within the Gammaherpesvirinae . Thirteen of these hedgehogs had liver and brain tissues screened for microscopic abnormalities, of which one had non-suppurative meningoencephalitis, but neither intranuclear inclusion bodies nor herpesvirus virions (on electron microscopical examination) were identified. Sequencing of the whole DNA polymerase gene confirmed two genetically different Human alphaherpesvirus 1 viruses in the Swedish and Swiss hedgehogs.
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Detection and molecular characterisation of cryptosporidium parvum in British European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus)
Veterinary parasitology, 2015Co-Authors: Lucy Sangster, Timothy Hopkins, Andrew A. Cunningham, Damer P. Blake, Guy Robinson, Rachel M. Chalmers, Becki LawsonAbstract:Surveillance was conducted for the occurrence of protozoan parasites of the genus Cryptosporidium in European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) in Great Britain. In total, 108 voided faecal samples were collected from hedgehogs newly admitted to eight wildlife casualty treatment and rehabilitation centres. Terminal large intestinal (LI) contents from three hedgehog carcasses were also analysed. Information on host and location variables, including faecal appearance, body weight, and apparent health status, was compiled. Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) targeting the 18S ribosomal RNA gene, confirmed by sequencing, revealed an 8% (9/111) occurrence of Cryptosporidium parvum in faeces or LI contents, with no significant association between the host or location variables and infection. Archived small intestinal (SI) tissue from a hedgehog with histological evidence of cryptosporidiosis was also positive for C. parvum by PCR and sequence analysis of the 18S rRNA gene. No other Cryptosporidium species were detected. PCR and sequencing of the glycoprotein 60 gene identified three known zoonotic C. parvum subtypes not previously found in hedgehogs: IIdA17G1 (n=4), IIdA19G1 (n=1) and IIdA24G1 (n=1). These subtypes are also known to infect livestock. Another faecal sample contained C. parvum IIcA5G3j which has been found previously in hedgehogs, and for which there is one published report in a human, but is not known to affect livestock. The presence of zoonotic subtypes of C. parvum in British hedgehogs highlights a potential public health concern. Further research is needed to better understand the epidemiology and potential impacts of Cryptosporidium infection in hedgehogs.
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Streptococcus pyogenes Infection in a Free-Living European Hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus).
EcoHealth, 2015Co-Authors: Lydia H. V. Franklinos, Androulla Efstratiou, Shaheed K. Macgregor, Shinto K. John, Timothy Hopkins, Andrew A. Cunningham, Becki LawsonAbstract:Streptococcus pyogenes, a common pathogen of humans, was isolated from the carcass of a free-living European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) found in northern England in June 2014. The animal had abscessation of the deep right cervical lymph node, mesenteric lymph nodes and liver. The S. pyogenes strain isolated from the lesions, peritoneal and pleural cavities was characterised as emm 28, which can be associated with invasive disease in humans. This is the first known report of S. pyogenes in a hedgehog and in any free-living wild animal that has been confirmed by gene sequencing. As close associations between wild hedgehogs and people in England are common, we hypothesise that this case might have resulted from anthroponotic infection.
Stephen Harris - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Accumulation of anticoagulant rodenticides in a non-target insectivore, the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus)
Environmental Pollution, 2009Co-Authors: Claire V. Dowding, Andrew Worgan, Philip J Baker, Richard F. Shore, Stephen HarrisAbstract:Studies on exposure of non-targets to anticoagulant rodenticides have largely focussed on predatory birds and mammals; insectivores have rarely been studied. We investigated the exposure of 120 European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) from throughout Britain to first- and second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides (FGARs and SGARs) using high performance liquid chromatography coupled with fluorescence detection (HPLC) and liquid-chromatography mass spectrometry (LCMS). The proportion of hedgehogs with liver SGAR concentrations detected by HPLC was 3-13% per compound, 23% overall. LCMS identified much higher prevalence for difenacoum and bromadiolone, mainly because of greater ability to detect low level contamination. The overall proportion of hedgehogs with LCMS-detected residues was 57.5% (SGARs alone) and 66.7% (FGARs and SGARs combined); 27 (22.5%) hedgehogs contained >1 rodenticide. Exposure of insectivores and predators to anticoagulant rodenticides appears to be similar. The greater sensitivity of LCMS suggests that hitherto exposure of non-targets is likely to have been under-estimated using HPLC techniques.
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Accumulation of anticoagulant rodenticides in a non-target insectivore, the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus)
Environmental Pollution, 2009Co-Authors: Claire V. Dowding, Andrew Worgan, Philip J Baker, Richard F. Shore, Stephen HarrisAbstract:Studies on exposure of non-targets to anticoagulant rodenticides have largely focussed on predatory birds and mammals; insectivores have rarely been studied. We investigated the exposure of 120 European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) from throughout Britain to first- and second-generation anticoagulant rodenticides (FGARs and SGARs) using high performance liquid chromatography coupled with fluorescence detection (HPLC) and liquid-chromatography mass spectrometry (LCMS). The proportion of hedgehogs with liver SGAR concentrations detected by HPLC was 3-13% per compound, 23% overall. LCMS identified much higher prevalence for difenacoum and bromadiolone, mainly because of greater ability to detect low level contamination. The overall proportion of hedgehogs with LCMS-detected residues was 57.5% (SGARs alone) and 66.7% (FGARs and SGARs combined); 27 (22.5%) hedgehogs contained >1 rodenticide. Exposure of insectivores and predators to anticoagulant rodenticides appears to be similar. The greater sensitivity of LCMS suggests that hitherto exposure of non-targets is likely to have been under-estimated using HPLC techniques.
Jasmin Skuballa - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Detection of Rickettsia helvetica in ticks collected from European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus, Linnaeus, 1758).
Ticks and tick-borne diseases, 2013Co-Authors: Stephanie Speck, Jasmin Skuballa, Trevor N. Petney, Miriam Pfäffle, Horst Taraschewski, Lea Perseke, Toni Bunnell, Sandra Essbauer, Gerhard DoblerAbstract:The role of wild mammals in the dissemination and maintenance of Rickettsia in nature is still under investigation. European hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) are often heavily infested by tick and flea species that are known to harbor and transmit different Rickettsia spp. We investigated ixodid ticks sampled from European hedgehogs for the presence of Rickettsia. A total of 471 Ixodes ricinus and 755 I. hexagonus were collected from 26 German and 7 British European hedgehogs. These were tested by a genus-specific real-time PCR assay targeting the citrate synthase gene (gltA). The rickettsia minimum infection rate was 11.7% with an increase detected with each parasitic tick stage. No significant difference in Rickettsia prevalence in the 2 Ixodes species was detected. Using sequencing of partial ompB, Rickettsia helvetica was the only species identified. More than half of the hedgehogs carried Rickettsia-positive ticks. In addition, tissue samples from 2/5 hedgehogs (where tissue DNA was available) were PCR-positive. These results show that European hedgehogs are exposed to R. helvetica via infected ticks and might be involved in the natural transmission cycle of this Rickettsia species.
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Molecular detection of Anaplasma phagocytophilum in the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) and its ticks.
Vector borne and zoonotic diseases (Larchmont N.Y.), 2010Co-Authors: Jasmin Skuballa, Trevor N. Petney, Miriam Pfäffle, Horst TaraschewskiAbstract:The European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) is a common wild mammal in Central Europe that shares habitats with humans in urban, peri-urban, and rural areas. Thus, this species may play a role in human contact with zoonotic diseases. Here we report the presence of the pathogen Anaplasma phagocytophilum in hedgehogs and their ticks in Germany.
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The avian acanthocephalan Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus (Palaeacanthocephala) parasitizing the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) in Europe and New Zealand
Parasitology Research, 2009Co-Authors: Jasmin Skuballa, Trevor N. Petney, Miriam Pfäffle, Horst Taraschewski, Lesley R. SmalesAbstract:The palaeacanthocephalan Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus is a common intestinal parasite of passerine birds, which can also occur parenterally or in the intestinal tract of mammals, often as an invading species in many countries worldwide. In this survey, introduced hedgehogs ( Erinaceus europaeus , n = 183) killed in New Zealand during a biocontrol campaign and conspecifics ( n = 174) that had died in hedgehog rehabilitation centers in Germany and Britain were examined for this parasite. In New Zealand, P. cylindraceus is recorded for the first time here, in the vicinity of Auckland. In Europe, prevalences ranged from 4.2% up to 47.6%, while in New Zealand, only 1.6% (Auckland 7.9%). Most of the worms occurred inside the peritoneal cavity where they had partly degenerated. Since hedgehogs are seldom preyed upon in continental Europe but often become traffic victims, we hypothesize that the worms inside them, whether extra- or intraperitoneally, contribute to the abundance and persistence of the parasite by being ingested by scavenging birds. Accordingly, we consider P. cylindraceus as a “modern parasite” taking advantage of two aspects of global change: anthropogenic promoted transmission (road kills) and the transcontinental spread of infected intermediate and/or final hosts caused by humans.
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The avian acanthocephalan Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus (Palaeacanthocephala) parasitizing the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) in Europe and New Zealand.
Parasitology research, 2009Co-Authors: Jasmin Skuballa, Trevor N. Petney, Miriam Pfäffle, Horst Taraschewski, Lesley R. SmalesAbstract:The palaeacanthocephalan Plagiorhynchus cylindraceus is a common intestinal parasite of passerine birds, which can also occur parenterally or in the intestinal tract of mammals, often as an invading species in many countries worldwide. In this survey, introduced hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus, n = 183) killed in New Zealand during a biocontrol campaign and conspecifics (n = 174) that had died in hedgehog rehabilitation centers in Germany and Britain were examined for this parasite. In New Zealand, P. cylindraceus is recorded for the first time here, in the vicinity of Auckland. In Europe, prevalences ranged from 4.2% up to 47.6%, while in New Zealand, only 1.6% (Auckland 7.9%). Most of the worms occurred inside the peritoneal cavity where they had partly degenerated. Since hedgehogs are seldom preyed upon in continental Europe but often become traffic victims, we hypothesize that the worms inside them, whether extra- or intraperitoneally, contribute to the abundance and persistence of the parasite by being ingested by scavenging birds. Accordingly, we consider P. cylindraceus as a “modern parasite” taking advantage of two aspects of global change: anthropogenic promoted transmission (road kills) and the transcontinental spread of infected intermediate and/or final hosts caused by humans.
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Tick-induced blood loss leads to regenerative anaemia in the European hedgehog ( Erinaceus europaeus).
Parasitology, 2009Co-Authors: Miriam Pfäffle, Jasmin Skuballa, Trevor N. Petney, M. Elgas, Horst TaraschewskiAbstract:Although there is an increasing understanding of the role of parasites in their host dynamics, accurate, quantitative estimates of parasite caused morbidity in wild animals are rare. Here, we examine the possible impact of 2 tick species (Ixodes ricinus, I. hexagonus) on the condition of the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus). For this, we tested for correlations between blood parameters of 36 adult hedgehogs from an experimental population enclosed in a natural habitat and their tick infestation over a period of 8 months (March-October 2007). We found correlations between the tick infestation and the concentration of red blood cells, haemoglobin, haematocrit, MCH, MCHC, thrombocytes, lymphocytes and neutrophils. These results indicate that ticks can induce anaemia in the hedgehog. The peripheral blood characteristics and the erythrocyte indices characterize this anaemia as haemorrhagic and regenerative. During the course of our study the hedgehogs of our population showed below normal mortality but morbidity was found to be high resulting from the blood loss caused by the feeding activity of the ticks.