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Onderstepoort Journal of Veterinary Research
On-line version ISSN 2219-0635
Print version ISSN 0030-2465
Onderstepoort j. vet. res. vol.75 n.1 Pretoria 2008
RESEARCH COMMUNICATION
The prevalence and distribution of Argas walkerae (Acari: Argasidae) in the eastern region of the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa
N. NyangiweI; B. GummowII; I.G. HorakIII
IDöhne Agricultural Development Institute, Private Bag X15, Stutterheim, 4930 South Africa, and Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Pretoria, Onderstepoort, 0110 South Africa
IIDepartment of Production Animal Studies, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Pretoria, Onderstepoort, 0110 South Africa
IIIDepartment of Zoology and Entomology, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, 9300 South Africa, and Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Pretoria, Onderstepoort, 0110 South Africa, and Division of Parasitology, ARC-Onderstepoort Veterinary Institute, Onderstepoort, 0110 South Africa
ABSTRACT
The prevalence and geographic distribution of the fowl tampan, Argas walkerae Kaiser & Hoogstraal, 1969 was determined in the eastern region of the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa by inspecting two fowl houses in the vicinity of each of 72 randomly selected communal cattle dip-tanks. Tampans were collected from 102 (70.8 %) of the 144 fowl houses in the neighbourhood of 57 (79.2 %) of the 72 selected dip-tanks, and the localities of the collections were mapped. Argas walkerae was present in fowl houses from the warm coastal regions of the Indian Ocean in the south to the cold and mountainous Drakensberg in the north-east of the Province. Taking into account the probable sensitivity of the sampling method, it is estimated that A. walkerae is likely to be present in fowl houses belonging to between 74 and 84 % of communities making use of cattle dip-tanks in the eastern region of the Eastern Cape Province, and that when it is present, between 64 and 75 %> of fowl houses will be infested. The geographic distribution of A. walkerae seemed to be more strongly associated with the presence of fowls and fowl houses containing raw or processed wood in their structure than with climate.
Keywords: Argas walkerae, Eastern Cape Province, geographic distribution, prevalence, South Africa
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Accepted for publication 19 November 2007-Editor
E-mail: nkululeko@dohne.agric.za