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The reaction of some variants of Ornithodoros moubata Murray (Argasidae, Ixodoidea) to desiccation

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 April 2009

G. A. Walton
G. A. Walton
Affiliation:
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
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Extract

1. Ten strains of Ornithodoros moubata not fed as adults and never mated were exposed to dry air at 32·2° C. and the effect recorded by measuring the loss of weight and survival rates.

2. Two rates of water-loss were found and O. moubata may be divided into three groups on physiological grounds. Strains found in native huts in South Africa differ from all other tested strains by losing water in dry air at 0·16 mg. per day. All other tested strains lost water at 0·32 mg. (range 0·29–0·4 mg.) per day. The wild strains of the East African warthog and porcupine burrows are distinguished from the East African domestic strains by their ability to withstand prolonged starvation.

3. The initial mean weight of a strain in any of the groups has a considerable effect upon survival in dry air, the percentage survival (in 100 days tested) being directly proportional to the original weight of the ticks. Size of individuals could alone lead to ultimate survival differences of two months in different strains of the same form.

Type
Research Article
Information
Parasitology , Volume 50 , Issue 1-2 , May 1960 , pp. 81 - 88
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1960

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References

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