Environmental Drivers of Gulf Coast Tick (Acari: Ixodidae) Range Expansion in the United States

Flenniken, J Matthew, Tuten, Holly C, Rose Vineer, Hannah ORCID: 0000-0002-1488-0315, Phillips, Victoria C, Stone, Chris M and Allan, Brian F (2022) Environmental Drivers of Gulf Coast Tick (Acari: Ixodidae) Range Expansion in the United States. Journal of Medical Entomology, 59 (5). pp. 1625-1635.

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Abstract

<jats:title>Abstract</jats:title> <jats:p>In the United States, the Gulf Coast tick (Amblyomma maculatum Koch) is a species of growing medical and veterinary significance, serving as the primary vector of the pathogenic bacterium, Rickettsia parkeri (Rickettsiales: Rickettsiaceae), in humans and the apicomplexan parasite, Hepatozoon americanum, in canines. Ongoing reports of A. maculatum from locations outside its historically reported distribution in the southeastern United States suggest the possibility of current and continuing range expansion. Using an ecological niche modeling approach, we combined new occurrence records with high-resolution climate and land cover data to investigate environmental drivers of the current distribution of A. maculatum in the United States. We found that environmental suitability for A. maculatum varied regionally and was primarily driven by climatic factors such as annual temperature variation and seasonality of precipitation. We also found that presence of A. maculatum was associated with open habitat with minimal canopy cover. Our model predicts large areas beyond the current distribution of A. maculatum to be environmentally suitable, suggesting the possibility of future northward and westward range expansion. These predictions of environmental suitability may be used to identify areas at potential risk for establishment and to guide future surveillance of A. maculatum in the United States.</jats:p>

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Gulf Coast tick, Amblyomma maculatum, Rickettsia parkeri, tick-borne disease, range expansion
Divisions:	Faculty of Health and Life Sciences Faculty of Health and Life Sciences > Institute of Infection, Veterinary and Ecological Sciences
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	11 Aug 2022 08:34
Last Modified:	20 Jul 2023 01:30
DOI:	10.1093/jme/tjac091
Related URLs:	Author Publisher
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3160959