Ixodes prokopjevi (Emel´yanova, 1979)

Fedorov, Denis & Hornok, Sándor, 2024, Checklist of hosts, illustrated geographical range, and ecology of tick species from the genus Ixodes (Acari, Ixodidae) in Russia and other post-Soviet countries, ZooKeys 1201, pp. 255-343 : 255-343

Ixodes prokopjevi (Emel´yanova, 1979)

Pholeoixodes prokopjevi Emel’yanova, 1979: 14.

Recorded hosts.

Mammalia: Daurian hedgehog Mesechinus dauuricus (Sundevall) ( Emelyanova 1979) .

Recorded locations

(Fig. 28 ). Russia: Transbaikal ( Emelyanova 1979).

Ecology and other information.

Ixodes prokopjevi is an extremely poorly studied tick species initially described based on the male holotype from steppes of north-eastern Mongolia; its paratypes, larvae and nymphs, are noted as originating from the outskirts of the lake Baruun Shavart Nuur in Eastern Mongolia, as well as females and nymphs from the south-eastern Transbaikal without any indications of certain points of findings ( Emelyanova 1979).

Kolonin (2009) states that this species should be considered a synonym of I. crenulatus but Guglielmone et al. (2010, 2014) recognize it as a valid species.

The Daurian hedgehog was recorded as a host, but we can assume that carnivores, lagomorphs, and rodents are also hosts of this tick species, as in case of I. crenulatus , another representative of the subgenus Pholeoixodes and the most similar species to this tick. The distribution area and ecology of I. prokopjevi , as well host-parasite relationships and their role in transmission of vector-borne infections remain unknown.

Figures

Figure 28. Map of Russia and neighboring countries showing the locations where Ixodes prokopjevi was reported.