Primary Detection of the Establishment of Blacklegged Ticks, Ixodes scapularis, in British Columbia, Canada
Ticks transport and transmit microbial pathogens that inflict malevolent diseases
on domestic and wildlife animals, and humans. We reveal the first-time record of the
blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis, in British Columbia (BC) and, concurrently, far western
North America. We unveil the primary tick-host record of I. scapularis parasitizing a Mallard
duck, Anas platyrhynchos. In our study, the most pronounced Ixodes species was I. scapularis
(61%) followed by the western blacklegged tick, Ixodes pacificus (34%). The most frequently
occurring mammalian host parasitized by I. scapularis was the eastern cottontail, Sylvilagus
floridanus, a lagomorph of grassland habitats. Healthcare professionals must be aware that
both I. pacificus, and I. scapularis bite humans in BC, and transmit at least six tick-borne
human zoonotic pathogens that cause insidious diseases