Low and high thermal tolerance characteristics for unfed larvae of the winter tick Dermacentor albipictus (Acari: Ixodidae) with special reference to moose

Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases
Christopher J HolmesJay A Yoder

Abstract

We report that larvae of the winter tick Dermacentor albipictus, the only stage that will quest for a host, can tolerate short-term cold shock down to -25°C and short-term heat shock as high as 46°C. Unlike a three host-tick, larvae of D. albipictus have no preconditioning response to low or high temperature exposure by rapid cold hardening (RCH) or heat hardening, and poor ability to acclimate to low and high temperature extremes. Thermal tolerance limits were not improved as the result of larval clustering, and there was only a minimal effect due to changes in photoperiod. These larvae are freeze intolerant and die at higher temperatures (-5 to -10°C) from contact with ice by inoculative freezing. In absence of cold-associated resistance mechanisms, winter survival requires that larvae procure a host before the first snow cover. Their low and high temperature tolerance, however, is a key survival element that adapts them for off-host periods during summer, which in the arctic could allow for northern expansion.

References

Oct 1, 1984·Journal of Wildlife Diseases·A W FranzmannD C Johnson
Jan 1, 1996·Journal of Medical Entomology·J K VandykK B Platt
Aug 23, 2016·Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases·Andrew J RosendaleJoshua B Benoit

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Citations

Feb 13, 2019·Journal of Medical Entomology·James L OcciDina M Fonseca
Apr 15, 2020·Animals : an Open Access Journal From MDPI·Emilio Clarke-CrespoCarlos A López-González
Apr 18, 2019·International Journal for Parasitology. Parasites and Wildlife·Jay A YoderHans Klompen
Nov 28, 2020·Annals of the Entomological Society of America·Brenda LealRobert K Dearth
Nov 13, 2020·Parasites & Vectors·Emily S CheneryPéter K Molnár
Apr 2, 2021·Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. Part A, Molecular & Integrative Physiology·Alicia M FielerJoshua B Benoit
Apr 26, 2021·Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology. Part A, Molecular & Integrative Physiology·Joshua B BenoitRichard E Lee

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