Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
Adults: Sheep, goat, mongoose, bird species (jungle fowl), and from flag
dragging.
Distribution
93,113,114,120,143
India (Himachal Pradesh, Karnataka, Orissa, Uttarakhand, Maharashtra), Sri Lanka.
Related Species
This is a very small species and resembles Haemaphysalis doenitzi Warburton and
Nuttall, 1909. Comparison of H. minuta with H. doenitzi reveals that H. minuta dif-
fers in several respects, including the presence of the retrograde spur on palpal seg-
ment II ventrally; shorter lateral grooves, which cross one instead of two festoons
on each side; longer spurs on coxa I; and spurs on the trochanters ventrally.
Disease Relationship
131
In KFD area collection, only six KFD virus isolations have been reported from
nymphal stages of this species during the period from 1961 to 1972. This species
has proved its efficiency to transmit the KFD virus (in laboratory transmission
studies).
2.6 Subgenus Haemaphysalis
General Characteristics
According to Hoogstraal and Kim, this subgenus may have apparently evolved
from Herpetobia in Indian subregion of Oriental region. It contains 16 contempo-
rary species in six species groups, world over. Wild and domestic Artiodactyla
(various deer, wild pigs, the serow, goral, blackbuck, etc.) are the chief hosts of
most adults (11 of 16 species). Carnivores are secondary hosts of some of these 11
species. The basis capitulum of each stage, except some larvae, bears moderate to
fairly large cornua. Small but distinctive ventral cornua are present in immatures of
H. indoflava and H. birmaniae and also appear in a less developed form in the
immatures of a few other species in this subgenus. Ventral cornua are rare in the
genus Haemaphysalis. Immatures of H. birmaniae are also unusual in that they like
adults parasitize Artiodactyla (rather than Rodentia). Palpi of Haemaphysalis
immatures and adults are only slightly advanced from the compact from character-
izing Herpetobia and the SP group H. punctata. These palpi are slightly more elon-
gate, either broader posteriorly (as in some Herpetobia nymph) or elongate with
moderate flange, but are not broadly expanded (as in Ornithophysalis and
Rhipistoma). Except for the ventral spur of palpal segment III and some posterior
broadening, the palpi of the subgenus Haemaphysalis are not generally specialized
for mammal-hair hooking.
