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7 May 2024 The first record of an established population of Amblyomma maculatum (Acari: Ixodidae) in New Jersey, USA
Brandon L. Musnoff, Mervin Keith Q. Cuadera, Matthew R. Birney, Lara Zipper, William Nicholson, Bryan Ayres, Kim Cervantes, Dana Woell, James L. Occi
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Abstract

Amblyomma maculatum Koch, the Gulf Coast tick, is expanding northward from its original range in the southeastern United States. In 2013, its most northern collection was in Delaware. Amblyomma maculatum has since been found in Connecticut, Illinois, and New York. It is the vector of the human pathogen Rickettsia parkeri, the causative agent of R. parkeri rickettsiosis. We report the first finding of an established population of A. maculatum in Salem County, NJ, with a R. parkeri infection prevalence rate of 23.8%. Our finding of A. maculatum is consistent with other recent findings in the northeastern United States in that specimens were found in open areas devoid of tree canopy. This discovery demonstrates the importance of tick surveillance in order to identify expanding tick populations and the pathogens they may transmit.

Brandon L. Musnoff, Mervin Keith Q. Cuadera, Matthew R. Birney, Lara Zipper, William Nicholson, Bryan Ayres, Kim Cervantes, Dana Woell, and James L. Occi "The first record of an established population of Amblyomma maculatum (Acari: Ixodidae) in New Jersey, USA," Journal of Medical Entomology 61(4), 1081-1085, (7 May 2024). https://doi.org/10.1093/jme/tjae056
Received: 25 December 2023; Accepted: 15 April 2024; Published: 7 May 2024
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KEYWORDS
Amblyomma maculatum
Gulf Coast tick
Ixodidae
Rickettsia parkeri
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