Dermacentor albipictus

Dermacentor albipictus, the winter tick, is a species of hard tick that parasitizes many different mammal species in North America. It is commonly associated with cervid species such as elk (Cervus canadensis), white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), mule deer (O. hemionus) and caribou (Rangifer tarandus) but is primarily known as a serious pest of moose (Alces alces).[1][2] As early as 1909, Ernest Thompson Seton described the winter tick as a greater enemy of the moose than were "wolves, bears, and cougars." [3]

Winter tick
Larva of winter tick
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Animalia
Phylum:
Arthropoda
Class:
Arachnida
Subclass:
Acari
Order:
Ixodida
Family:
Ixodidae
Genus:
Dermacentor
Species:
D. albipictus
Binomial name
Dermacentor albipictus
(Packard, 1869)

The tick can be found all across North America, and has a large geographic distribution. While it can be found in several different habitats, it is often located in areas with a presence of moose.[4]

Some evidence indicates that increasing populations of the winter tick may be responsible for a steep decline in the eastern moose population throughout the southern half of their range.[5] In recent years, heavy infestations up to 75,000 ticks[6] have been seen on single moose, and can lead to the death of the animal.[7]

Description

The winter tick is sexually dimorphic, with adult females larger than the males. The adult female is mostly reddish-brown, but with a white dorsal shield behind the head. The smaller adult male is dark brown with some white markings.[4]

Female ticks become unusually large toward the end of winter, measuring up to 15 mm (0.6 in).[8]

Lifecycle

The lifecycle of D. albipictus lasts for about a year, and it is a single-host tick. This means that the entire lifecycle of the tick (larvae, nymphs, and adults) progresses on a single host animal.[4] First, in late summer, larvae hatch from eggs. After lying dormant for some time, they start to ascend vegetation and to group in clusters on plants up to 1.25 m in height. This allows them to latch onto animals that pass by and begin to feed on their hosts. While on a host, the larvae go through the nymphal stage and then finally transform into adults.[8]

Larvae became nymphs about 10 days after being applied to the moose. Nymphs then undergo a long diapause before becoming adults in roughly mid-February. One moose, which had been infected with larvae 37 days after the others, still showed a similar timing of adult ticks appearing. The diapause may serve to delay maturity until the onset of warmer weather, as has been seen in other species of ticks.[9]

During late winter, the ticks mate, and blood-filled females drop off the host to lay their eggs and die.[8] For captive moose observed in Ontario in 1988, tick detachment occurred in late March to early April.[9]

Effect on ecosystems

Tick populations and their effects on moose have been observed to vary from year to year.[10] Winters that are shorter and warmer have been shown to correlate with increased numbers of ticks in moose populations.[11]

The tick not only affects moose, but also other wildlife that can be connected with the moose. In 2001, the moose abundance on Isle Royale was around 1200, but due to the ticks, the moose population fell to around 400 in 2007. With the decreased moose population, the main food source of the moose--various shrubs species and balsam fir--has had an increase in abundance.[12]

References
  1. "The Ecology of Dermacentor albipictus".
  2. "A Handbook to the Ticks of Canada" (PDF).
  3. Addison, Edward M (January 1, 2007). "White as a Ghost, Winter Ticks and Moose". Journal of Wildlife Diseases. 43 (1): 150–151. doi:10.7589/0090-3558-43.1.150. Our understanding of winter ticks (Dermacentor albipictus) and moose (Alces alces) is largely a 20th century story beginning when Seton (1909) described winter ticks as a greater "enemy" of moose than were wolves, bears, and cougars. Until 1980, field observations comprised the literature on winter ticks and moose. In the last two decades of the century, Bill Samuel, along with colleagues in Alberta and others, examined the relationship between winter ticks and moose using thorough experimental and field studies.
  4. "Tick Species of Maine - Winter Tick or Moose Tick".
  5. Hari Sreenivasan (2014-04-07). "What's devastating the wild moose population in New England?". PBS Newshour. Retrieved 2014-04-08.
  6. Dell'Amore, Christine (2015-06-01). "What's a Ghost Moose? How Ticks Are Killing an Iconic Animal". National Geographic News. Retrieved 2019-03-08. The reason is likely climate change, biologists say, which is ushering in shorter, warmer winters that are boosting the fortunes of winter ticks. The tiny creatures latch on to moose here in staggering numbers: One moose can house 75,000 ticks, which are helping to drive a troubling rise in moose deaths, especially among calves.
  7. Samuel, Bill (2004). White as a Ghost: Winter Ticks & Moose. Federation of Alberta Naturalists. ISBN 978-0969613466.
  8. "Moose winter tick".
  9. Addison, Edward M; McLaughlin, Robert F (1988). "Growth and Development of Winter Tick, Dermacentor albipictus, on Moose, Alces alces". The Journal of Parasitology. 74 (4): 670–678. doi:10.2307/3282188. JSTOR 3282188. PMID 3397828. Engorged females first started to detach by 24 March, and many had engorged and detached by early April (190-192 days after infestation).
  10. Ritcey, RW; Edwards, RY (1958). "Parasites and Diseases of the Wells Gray Moose Herd". Journal of Mammalogy. 39 (1): 139–145. doi:10.2307/1376619. JSTOR 1376619. There is annual variation in the abundance of ticks on these moose…In years of heavy loads some extreme conditions have been recorded. Through late March and early April in 1952, most moose beds were bloodstained and contained ticks. Thirty-one ticks were found in one bed. In that year, a weak calf, reported by Patrolman C. E. Gaglardi, was captured and examined. It had ticks over most of [its] body with the exception of the back and shoulders…There was little space for more ticks on the ears, inside or out. The body was dotted with clusters averaging three or four ticks each.
  11. Samuel, WM (2007). "FACTORS AFFECTING EPIZOOTICS OF WINTER TICKS AND MORTALITY OF MOOSE" (PDF). Alces. Retrieved March 8, 2019. Die-offs of moose (Alces alces) associated with, or attributed to, winter ticks (Dermacentor albipictus) are widespread and have been reported since the early part of the last century...The proposal that warmer and shorter winters result in increased survival of adult female ticks dropping off moose in March and April, and increased tick populations on moose the following winter, was generally confirmed. Annual changes in hair damage and loss on moose, which are documented from the air, coincided with annual changes in numbers of ticks on moose, providing managers with a survey tool to monitor and estimate changing numbers of ticks.
  12. "Small Creature, Big Influence".
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