: COOPERATIVE STATE- FEDERAL TICK ERADICATION 
ACTIVITIES FISCAL YEAR W972 jx! ve 
The Tick Eradication Program 
Cattle fever ticks, Boophi/us annulatus -and Boophilus microplus, spread cattle tick fever 
{bovine piroplasmosis). 
An all-out State-Federal cooperative eradication program was instituted by the United States 
Department of Agriculture (USDA) in 1906. In 1943, 37 years later, the tick had been eradicated 
from the United States except for a narrow buffer zone under Federal and State quarantines along 
the Texas-Mexico border. There, reinfestations occur, and an active program is required to prevent 
spread into adjacent areas. Reinfestations have also occurred in California and in Florida from time 
to time. But vigilance and prompt eradication measures have eliminated the outbreaks. Keeping the 
ticks out of the United States is a major part of the effort against cattle fever ticks. 
The eradication program includes inspection, quarantine, and dipping of infested and exposed 
animals and animals from infested or exposed premises. 
National Tick Sureillance Program 
A detailed report, APHIS 91-8, ‘National Tick Surveillance Program, Calendar Year 1971,” 
was published in November 1972. This report indicated that during calendar year 1971, 4,247 tick 
survey collections were made and identified. Of these collections, 2,326 were from cattle, 483 from 
dogs, 824 from horses or mules, 210 from zoo animals and miscellaneous hosts, 227 from native 
wildlife, and 177 from animals offered for importation. 
Table 1 lists exotic ticks and certain other parasites that were collected in the United States in 
fiscal year 1972 and the hosts on which these parasites were found. 
Parasite Identification and Confirmation 
Emphasis on the importance of collecting ticks from all livestock species for identification 
continued during fiscal year 1972. A total of 2,618 collections of ticks were received and identified 
at the Veterinary Services Diagnostic Laboratory, Parasitology Section, Beltsville, Md. The 
laboratory also identified 341 mite specimens and 244 miscellaneous (lice, grubs, fleas, etc.) 
specimens. 
Approximately 27,200 collections of suspected screwworm larvae were received and identified 
at Beltsville and at the Veterinary Services Screwworm Data Center, Mission, Tex. Of these, 23,244 
collections were identified as screwworms, and the remainder were classified as various species of 
blowfly larvae. 
