Rhipicephalus

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Template:Short description Template:Automatic taxobox Rhipicephalus is a genus of ticks in the family Ixodidae, the hard ticks, consisting of about 74 or 75 species.[1][2] Most are native to tropical Africa.[1] Several are of medical importance as they can transmit East Coast fever, anaplasmosis, babesiosis, rickettsiosis, Lyme disease, Q fever, Rocky Mountain spotted fever. In addition they can also transmit Boutonneuse fever, and Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever in tropical areas .

Morphology

Rhipicephalus ticks are commonly called 'the brown tick' as they are mostly brown in colour.[3] Most adult ticks in this genus do not have colour patterns on their scutum (inornate).[3] This makes the species difficult to distinguish from one another because most are quite similar, but individuals of one particular species can be quite variable.[2][3] Ticks have traditionally been identified by examination of distinctive morphological features. Most of the characteristics used to identify species pertain to male specimens.[2] The immature and female specimens are sometimes simply impossible to identify due to the lack of differential morphological features.[2][3][4]

Disease potential

Many Rhipicephalus spp. are of economic, medical, and veterinary importance because of their blood feeding lifestyle. They are possible vectors of many pathogens in humans and animals. They can transmit pathogens that cause animal and human diseases, such as East Coast fever, anaplasmosis, babesiosis, rickettsiosis,[1] Boutonneuse fever, Lyme disease, Q fever, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever.[5] In addition to the infectious agents spread by ticks, tick bites can lead to allergic and toxic reactions.[6][7]

Certain species may cause tick-caused paralysis when they inject a neurotoxin with their bite, for example Rhipicephalus evertsi evertsi.[8] Rhipicephalus evertsi evertsi paralyses only sheep, even though it also feeds on cattle, gerbils, guinea pigs, hamsters, mice, rabbits, or rats.[8]

Sex pheromone studies

A number of Rhipicephalus spp. females produce phenol and p-cresol after being fed for six days. These compounds may act as sex pheromones since these compounds were shown to be the sex pheromone of Rhipicephalus appendiculatus. [9]

Etymology

The name Rhipicephalus is derived from the Greek word rhiphis, meaning "fan-like",Script error: No such module "Unsubst". and κεφαλή, kephalē, meaning "head". The two terms are related to the hexagonal basis capituli of Rhipicephalus.

Species

The genus consists of about 74 or 75 species.[1]

Species in the global domestic environment include the brown dog tick ( Rhipicephalus sanguineus).

Rhipicephalus bursa is a carrier of babesiosis, theileriosis and anaplasmosis in domestic animals, of the Nairobi sheep disease, and an aggressive vector of the agents of the Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever and of the Q fever.[10]


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Subgenus Boophilus

'Boophilus was once considered a separate genus, but studies in the early 2000s resulted in Boophilus being made a subgenus of Rhipicephalus.[15] Although Boophilus has been included in the Rhipicephalus genus, their morphology is different from the typical Rhipicephalus species.[4]

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References

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  1. a b c d Olwoch, J. M., et al. (2007). Climate change and the genus Rhipicephalus (Acari: Ixodidae) in Africa. Onderstepoort J Vet Res 74(1), 45-72.
  2. a b c d Beati, L. and J. E. Keirans. (2001). Analysis of the systematic relationships among ticks of the genera Rhipicephalus and Boophilus (Acari: Ixodidae) based on mitochondrial 12S ribosomal DNA gene sequences and morphological characters. The Journal of Parasitology 87(1), 32.
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  5. Rhipicephalus. Tick Identification Key. University of Lincoln.
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Further reading

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External links

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