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Phylogeography of Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato and its relationships with climatic factors

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Abstract

Brown dog ticks morphologically identifiable as Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato, are distributed world-wide and their systematics is controversial. Results of genetic and reproductive compatibility studies of geographically distinct populations of R. sanguineus s.l. indicate that the R. sanguineus complex is paraphyletic. To further elucidate systematic relationships within R. sanguineus s.l. and geographic boundaries of its lineages, we conducted a phylogeographical study of 136 tick specimens from 23 countries. Voucher specimens were morphologically identified. A phylogenetic tree was constructed using concatenated partial mitochondrial 12S and 16S rDNA gene sequences and analyzed by the Neighbor-Joining method. A set of 19 bioclimatic variables within the WorldClim dataset were extracted and analyzed to assess correlations between distribution of R. sanguineus s.l. lineages and climatic variables. The following four branches are clearly recognized on the phylogenetic tree: R. sanguineus s.l.—tropical and temperate clades, R. leporis, and R. turanicus. DNA sequences of Rhipicephalus ticks from Israel differ from those of other groups. Strong association between geographical locations of major clades of R. sanguineus s.l. and temperature was identified. The tropical clade of R. sanguineus s.l. occupies areas with the annual mean temperature >20 °C, whereas the temperate clade is present in areas with the annual mean temperature <20 °C. Our results indicate that ticks in two closely related phylogenetic clades are adapted to different environmental conditions and support proposals for re-classification of R. sanguineus complex. Differences in R. sanguineus s.l. ecology and human/animal pathogens transmitted by different taxa of brown dog tick need to be studied.

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Acknowledgements

Authors are grateful to all partners: Marcos R. André, Lidia Chitimia, Gregory Dasch, Gerhard Dobler, Phil Kaufman, Marcelo Labruna, Amanda D. Loftis, Rosangela Zacarias Machado, Cheryl Magnusson, Alice Maina, Magalie Rene-Martellet, Melissa Miller, Andrew J. Monaghan, Santiago Nava, Christopher Paddock, Agustín Estrada-Peña, Frederic Stachurski, Holly Tuten, Alan Walker, Emma Weeks, and Nancy Velde who generously provided tick specimens.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Rickettsial Zoonoses Branch, 1600 Clifton Road, MS G-13, Atlanta, GA, 30333, USA

    Galina E. Zemtsova, Alyssa Snellgrove & Michael L. Levin

  2. Institute for Coastal Plain Science, Georgia Southern University, Statesboro, GA, 30460, USA

    Dmitry A. Apanaskevich

  3. USAF School of Aerospace Medicine/PHR, Wright-Patterson AFB, OH, 45433, USA

    Will K. Reeves

  4. Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Fort Collins, CO, USA

    Micah Hahn

  5. Research Applications Laboratory, National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO, USA

    Micah Hahn

Authors
  1. Galina E. Zemtsova
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  2. Dmitry A. Apanaskevich
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  3. Will K. Reeves
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  4. Micah Hahn
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  5. Alyssa Snellgrove
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  6. Michael L. Levin
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Correspondence to Galina E. Zemtsova.

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Disclaimer:The views expressed in this article are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of the Air Force, the Department of Defense, Department of Health and Human Services, or the U.S. Government.

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Zemtsova, G.E., Apanaskevich, D.A., Reeves, W.K. et al. Phylogeography of Rhipicephalus sanguineus sensu lato and its relationships with climatic factors. Exp Appl Acarol 69, 191–203 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10493-016-0035-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10493-016-0035-4

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