Ticks (Acari: Ixodidae) infesting the Arabian camel (Camelus dromedarius) in the Sinai, Egypt with a note on the acaricidal efficacy of ivermectin.

In this study, tick burdens on camels (Camelus dromedarius) were determined in the vicinity of the St. Catherine monastery, Sinai, Egypt. In total 2,545 ticks (1,491 adults and 1,054 nymphs) were collected and identified. Mean tick burdens were relatively heavy and the range in number of ticks per camel was very broad (6-173). Hyalomma dromedarii was the predominant tick species and accounted for 95.6% of the adult ticks. Other ticks found were H. marginatum subspp. and H. anatolicum excavatum. All nymphs collected were Hyalomma spp. In addition, the effect of ivermectin (Ivomec MSD AGVET) on tick burdens, when given subcutaneously at 0.2 mg/kg-1, was evaluated in nine camels in the date-palm plantation of Kibbutz Yahel in the Arava valley, Israel. Initial tick burdens on these camels (half-body tick counts) ranged from 20-105 ticks per camel. Seven camels from the same herd with half-body tick counts ranging from 40-107 ticks per camel were not treated and served as a control group. Ivermectin was not effective against Hyalomma tick infestation in camels under these conditions.