Prevalence of ixodid ticks on cattle and sheep northeast of Iran.

A survey was carried out to investigate the prevalence of hard tick species (Acari: Ixodidae) on cattle and sheep north of Iran. The aim of study was to determine the prevalence of hard ticks on cattle and sheep in the mountainous areas of Golestan province and their geographical distribution. A total of 26 ticks were collected from 22 infested cattle and 26 ticks were collected from 12 infested sheep during activating seasons of ticks in 2013-2014. The species collected from cattle and sheep were Hyalomma marginatum, Hyalomma anatolicum, Hyalomma asiaticum, Rhipicephalus bursa and Rhipicephalus sanguineus. The results show that these are dominant tick species in the surveyed area.