Nuttalliella

Nuttalliella namaqua

The Nuttalliellia namaqua is a species in the order of the ticks. It is the only type of Nuttalliellidae family. This family is regarded as a transitional form between soft ticks and hard ticks. Nuttalliellia namaqua regarded as relict form that has retained original features. Your position basal to the two major ticks families was confirmed by molecular studies. This kind possesses a partially sklerotisiertes back-plate, which is referred to as pseudo - Skutum. The rest of the integument is leathery and were more similar to the soft ticks.

Like all species of ticks sucks Nuttalliella namaqua blood. As host species have been identified: hyrax, meerkats, a Karru rat species ( Parotomys brantsi ) and the little strip Swallow ( Hirundo abyssinica ). Recently, first conducted experiments suggest lizards as preferred hosts. The type has neither medical nor veterinary importance.

Its distribution area is mainly South and South West Africa, in particular the Republic of South Africa and Namibia, where the species has been found so far at six localities in no more than 30 copies. In 1976 it was discovered in Tanzania. All localities lie in drylands.

Swell

  • J. Dönges: Parasitology. With special consideration of human pathogenic forms. Thieme, Stuttgart 1988
  • H. Mehlhorn and G. Piekarski: Floor plan of the parasites customer. Heidelberg, 6th edition, 2002.
  • Ben J. Mans, Daniel de Klerk, Ronel Pienaar, Abdalla A. Latif: Nuttalliella namaqua: A Living Fossil and Closest Relative to the Ancestral Tick Lineage: Implications for the Evolution of Blood - Feeding in ticks. PLoS one 6, 8, e23675, 2011 doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0023675
  • James E. Keiran, Carleton M. Clifford, Harry Hoogstraal, Emmett R. Eaton: Discovery of Nuttalliella namaqua Bedford (Acarina: Ixodoidea: Nuttalliellidae ) in Tanzania and Redescription of the Female Based on Scanning Electron Microscopy. Annals of the Entomological Society of America, 69, 5, pp. 926-932, 1976
  • GAH Bedford: Nuttalliella namaqua, a new genus and species of tick. Parasitology, 23, 2, pp. 230-232, 1931 doi: 10.1017/S003118200001357 ( first description of the genus and species )
  • Ticks
  • Ixodida
Parasitiformes Digital Object Identifier
611272
de