Distribution And Fauna Analysis Of Ticks In Yunnan Province, China

Ticks, belonging to the Order Parasitiformes(sub-order Ixodida), Class Arachnida(sub-class Acari), Phylum Arthropoda, are obligated blood-sucking parasites which live on terrestrial vertebrates. They are intermedia and storage host of viruses, protozoa, bacteria and toxins, which imposes huge negative impact on human health and animal husbandry.A total of >20000 ticks were collected in 45 areas in Yunnan Province, China, from July 2013 to February 2015, using dragging, flagging, artificial trapping, retrorse hair picking method and snap-traps. These ticks were identified and classified, their distribution ranges were mapped. Yunnan was divided into 19 small areas according to natural barriers such as high mountains and large rivers. Pearson correlation, principal component analysis and clustering analysis were used to determine the zoogeographical divisions of the species. Points from this study are as follows.Firstly, it is determined that there are 47 tick species living in Yunnan, belonging to seven genera from two families. Some are endemic species including H.(A.) kolonini sp.n.、H. menglaensis and H. anomaloceraea. This tick fauna includes a species of Carios from Argasidae, and six species of Ixodes, four species of Amblyomma, 28 species of Haemaphysalis, five species of Rhipicephalus, two species of Hyalomma and one species of Dermacentor from the Class Ixodidae.Secondly, R. microplus, I.granulatus, I.acutitarsus, H. montgomeryi, R. haemaphysaloides and I.ovatus are wide-distributied species in Yunnan, accounting for 12.8% of the total number of the species. There are 34 patchy-distributed species accounting for 72.3%. A.varanense, H. cornigera, H. ornithophila, H. yeni, C.vespertilionis, H. anomaloceraea and H.(A.) kolonini sp.n are spot-distributed species, accounting for 14.9%.Thirdly, fauna analysis shows that the 47 species are distributed in the Realm Oriental, which can be further divided into the Region S.W.China(Subregion Trans-Himalayan Mountains in N.W.Yunan and Subregion S.W.China Mountains) and the Region S.China(Subregion Southern Yunnan Mountains). Further divisions include four zoogeographical Province, they are Province S.Yunnan Mountains, Province Trans-Himalayan Mountains and Gorges in N.W.Yunnan, Province Midwest Yunnan Highland and Mountains and Province Karst Hills. These provinces cover 14 zoogeographical dirtricts, including Wumeng Karst Hills, E.Yunnan Karst Hills, Xun-Qu-Zhao Highland Mountains, Ping-Ma Mountains, Pu-Hong Mid-Alpine, E.Lijiang Mid-Alpine, Central Yunnan Highland and Mountains, Li-Yong-Bin-Xiang Mid-high Alpine, Teng-Rui-Shi-Lin Mid-low Alpine and Basins, Diqing Mountains and Gorges, Salween and the Mekong river Mountains and Gorges, N’Mai River and Gaoligong Mountain, Xishuangbanna Mid-low Alpine and Puxi-Cangnan Mid-low Alpine and Basins.