Journal of the Department 

 OE Agriculture. 



Vol. L JULY, 1920. No. 4. 



Published muiithly in English and Afrikaans by the Uepartnient ut' Agriculture, 



Union of South Africa. 



SUBSCRIPTION": Within the Union and South-West Protectorate, 5Sm (otherwise Cs») 

 per annum, post free, payable in advance. 



Applications, with subscription^;, to be sent to the Government 

 Printer. Box 878. Pretoiia. 



TICKS FOUND ON MAN AND HIS DOMESTIC 

 ANIMALS AND POULTRY IN SOUTH AFRICA. 



By G. A. H. liEDFOUD, I^.E.S., Entomologist, Division ot Veterinary 

 Research, Onderstepoort, TransvaaL 



Ticks, as a number of farmers in South Africa are only too well aware, 

 play an important role in the transmission of certain diseases to 

 flomestic animals. Apart from this they also do a considerable amount 

 of harm when at all numerous by sucking- blood and setting- up irrita- 

 tion, which causes their hosts to lose their appetites and fall oif in 

 condition, and may even cause tlie death of their host without trans- 

 mitting a disease. 



Sir Arnold Theiler recorded a case in a pamphlet he wrote, 

 entitled: "Diseases, Ticks, and their Eradication" (now out of 

 print), in which a horse, badly infected with Blue Ticks (Boophiliis 

 (lecolovatus), died from acute anaemia as a result of the tick infesta- 

 tion. No less than 14 lb. of Blue Ticks were collected from this animal 

 in three days, and tiiis amount only represented about hnlf the number 

 of ticks which had engorged on this animal. 



The Spinose Ear Tick (Ornithodoros megnini), which has recently 

 been introduced into this country from America, and has now estab- 

 lished itself in many parts of the Cape Province and Orange Free 

 State, has often been known to kill sheep, goats and calves by the 

 irritation set up when feeding in the ears (it being only found in the 

 ears of its host). 



Owing to the fact that the disea.ses transmitted by ticks aie only 

 conveyed by certain species and not by all, and that it is necessary 

 to adopt dift'erent methods for combating the different species of ticks, 

 it is of the utmost importance that farmers should be able to recognize 

 the different kinds of ticks found on their domestic animals and birds. 

 Also, when inti-oducing stock on to a farm from another district the 

 farmer sliould know whether or not there are any disease-transmitting 

 ticks on the animals, and whether there are any species pre.sent which 



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