''Haemaphysalis longicornis'', the Asian longhorned tick, longhorned tick, bush tick, Asian tick, or cattle tick, is a

parasitic Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson ha ...

arachnid Arachnida () is a class of joint-legged invertebrate animals (arthropods), in the subphylum Chelicerata. Arachnida includes, among others, spiders, scorpions, ticks, mites, pseudoscorpions, harvestmen, camel spiders, whip spiders and vinegar ...

belonging to the

tick Ticks (order Ixodida) are parasitic arachnids that are part of the mite superorder Parasitiformes. Adult ticks are approximately 3 to 5 mm in length depending on age, sex, species, and "fullness". Ticks are external parasites, living by ...

family

Ixodidae The Ixodidae are the family of hard ticks or scale ticks, one of the three families of ticks, consisting of over 700 species. They are known as 'hard ticks' because they have a scutum or hard shield, which the other major family of ticks, the 'sof ...

. The Asian longhorned tick is a known livestock pest, especially in

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, and can transmit a disease called theileriosis to

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...

but not to humans. However, the tick has been associated with several other tickborne diseases in humans. An unfed female is typically 2.0–2.6 mm long and 1.5–1.8 mm wide, and grows to 9.8 mm long and 8.2 mm wide with engorgement. Distinguishing a specimen from other members of the genus ''Haemaphysalis'' requires microscopic examination of minor physical characteristics.

Geographic distribution

The Asian longhorned tick is native to temperate areas of East and Central Asia, including China,

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

, and Japan, as well as Pacific islands including Australia,

, Fiji, and

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only state ...

, to name a few.Rachel Can
''Haemaphysalis longicornis'' Neumann, 1901 Profile
New Zealand Biosecure Entomology Laboratory, April 2010, 9pp. The species was not known to be present on the

mainland United States The contiguous United States (officially the conterminous United States) consists of the 48 adjoining U.S. states and the Federal District of the United States of America. The term excludes the only two non-contiguous states, Alaska and Hawaii ...

until 9 November 2017, when it was first discovered on a sheep farm in

Hunterdon County, New Jersey Hunterdon County is a county located in the western section of the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the county's population was 128,947, making it the state's 18th-most populous county,New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

failed; the tick successfully

overwintered Overwintering is the process by which some organisms pass through or wait out the winter season, or pass through that period of the year when "winter" conditions (cold or sub-zero temperatures, ice, snow, limited food supplies) make normal act ...

and has since become established in the state as an invasive species. The tick may have been present in the eastern US for several years, but only recently detected.

Biology

The seasonal feeding and reproductive cycle resembles that of other ticks. The tick can reproduce sexually or by an asexual process called

parthenogenesis Parthenogenesis (; from the Greek grc, παρθένος, translit=parthénos, lit=virgin, label=none + grc, γένεσις, translit=génesis, lit=creation, label=none) is a natural form of asexual reproduction in which growth and developmen ...

. The latter exist in northern Japan and

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

, whereas the former exist in southern Japan, southern Korea and southern parts of the former

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

. An

aneuploid Aneuploidy is the presence of an abnormal number of chromosomes in a cell, for example a human cell having 45 or 47 chromosomes instead of the usual 46. It does not include a difference of one or more complete sets of chromosomes. A cell with any ...

race capable of both sexual and asexual reproduction capability exists in China. Unfed ticks can survive for close to a year, nymphs and adult females the longest, depending on temperature and humidity.

Host

The Asian longhorned tick parasitizes

mammals Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur o ...

and birds. It spreads quickly in farm animals such as cattle, horses, sheep, pigs, and chickens. Natural infestations have been found on wild animals like bear, deer, foxes and hares, small mammals like ferrets and rats, and birds. It has also been found on cats, dogs, and humans. It is believed to migrate by parasitizing birds, which carry it to new areas.

Disease vector

The Asian longhorned tick can transmit an animal disease called theileriosis to cattle, which can cause considerable blood loss and occasional death of calves, but mainly is important to dairy farmers because of decreased milk production and sheep farmers because of decreased wool quantity and quality. Human diseases such as Lyme spirochetes,

spotted fever A spotted fever is a type of tick-borne disease which presents on the skin. They are all caused by bacteria of the genus '' Rickettsia''. Typhus is a group of similar diseases also caused by ''Rickettsia'' bacteria, but spotted fevers and typhus ...

group rickettsiae, ''

Ehrlichia chaffeensis ''Ehrlichia chaffeensis'' is an obligate intracellular, Gram-negative species of Rickettsiales bacteria. It is a zoonotic pathogen transmitted to humans by the lone star tick (''Amblyomma americanum''). It is the causative agent of human monoc ...

'', and '' Anaplasma bovis'' have been detected in ''H. longicornis''. It has been associated with Russian spring-summer encephalitis, Powassan virus, Khasan virus,

tick-borne encephalitis virus Tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) is a positive-strand RNA virus associated with tick-borne encephalitis in the genus '' Flavivirus''. Classification Taxonomy TBEV is a member of the genus '' Flavivirus''. Other close relatives, members ...

, Japanese spotted fever, and

severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome Severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome (SFTS) is a tick-borne infection. Signs and symptoms include fever, vomiting, diarrhea, loss of consciousness and heamorrhage. It is an emerging infectious disease caused by ''Dabie bandavirus'' also k ...

. Human pathogens have not so far been detected in the Asian longhorned tick in the US.

References

External links

Species Profile - Asian Longhorned Tick (''Haemaphysalis longicornis'')
National Invasive Species Information Center,

United States National Agricultural Library The United States National Agricultural Library (NAL) is one of the world's largest agricultural research libraries, and serves as a national library of the United States and as the library of the United States Department of Agriculture. Located ...

. {{Taxonbar, from=Q3658534 Ticks Animals described in 1901 Ixodidae