Occurrence and Abundance of <i>Dermacentor reticulatus</i> in the Habitats of the Ecological Corridor of the Wieprz River, Eastern Poland

Ecological corridors are zones of natural vegetation, which connect with other vegetation strips to create migration routes for animals and plants. The aim of our study was to investigate the occurrence and relative abundance of <i>Dermacentor reticulatus</i> in various habitats of the e...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Zbigniew Zając, Aleksandra Sędzikowska, Weronika Maślanko, Aneta Woźniak, Joanna Kulisz
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2021-01-01
Series:Insects
Subjects:
Online Access:https://www.mdpi.com/2075-4450/12/2/96
Description
Summary:Ecological corridors are zones of natural vegetation, which connect with other vegetation strips to create migration routes for animals and plants. The aim of our study was to investigate the occurrence and relative abundance of <i>Dermacentor reticulatus</i> in various habitats of the ecological corridor of the Wieprz River in eastern Poland. Ticks were collected using the flagging method in seven sites within the ecological corridor of the Wieprz River, i.e., one of the longest uninterrupted vegetation strips in eastern Poland. The presence of <i>D. reticulatus</i> adults was confirmed in each of the examined sites. The autumn peak of tick activity dominated in most plots. During this period, on average up to 309.7 individuals were collected within 30-min. The results of our study show that, due to the high abundance of local <i>D. reticulatus</i> populations, the habitats located in the ecological corridor of the Wieprz River can be regarded as preferred habitats of this tick species.
ISSN:2075-4450