The effect of self-licking by cattle on infestations of cattle tick, Boophilus microplus (Canestrini)

Abstract

Infestations of Boophilus microplus (Canestrini) were established by applying single batches of larvae to individually stalled cattle, and the percentage yields of engorged female ticks from animals kept in harness to impede licking were compared with those from animals allowed to lick freely. In the harness trials, 33 per cent. of female ticks survived to fall as engorged adults from the host; in individual infestations this survival ranged from 5 to 69 per cent. In the trials without harness the corresponding survival was 9 per cent., ranging from 0.1 to 32 per cent. Statistical analysis showed a highly significant effect of harness in promoting survival of ticks. Licking (and other forms of host behaviour, e.g. kicking and rubbing, which produce tick mortality by mechanical means) must be considered in any study of natural mechanisms regulating cattle tick populations.