Occurrence of unusually large Hyalomma anatolicum from Dewas district, Madhya Pradesh-case report

During collection of ticks from different districts of Madhya Pradesh, three unusually large fully engorged females of Hyalomma anatolicum were collected from Karneshwar goshala of Dewas district of Madhya Pradesh. The morphometric analysis revealed that the mean length and breadth of the specimen were 19.0 ± 0.35 and 10.03 ± 0.12 mm, respectively. Mouthparts and legs were significantly (p<0.05) large. The basis capitulum was 1.01 ± 0.09 mm long and the first three pairs of legs were also significantly longer (5.0 ± 0.08 mm) than the normal female ticks (4.0 ± 0.03 mm). The mean tick weight of unusually large females was 1309.0 ± 8.7 mg. The females laid 841.8 ± 11.3 mg egg masses containing nearly 12580 ± 91.6 eggs, indicating higher prolificacy than normal H. anatolicum. PCR amplification of the cytochrome B1 gene from the blood of cattle confirmed that the cattle were positive for theileriosis, while no amplification of cytochrome B1 gene was obtained from the tick DNA.