Ticks (Acari:Ixodidae) of the Blue and White Nile ecosystems in the Sudan with particular reference to the Rhipicephalus sanguineus group.

Twenty-four adult ixodid tick species, infesting livestock and some wildlife hosts along the Blue and White Nile in the Sudan, were identified. Three species,Boophilus geigyi, Rhipicephalus camicasi andR. bergeoni, were recorded for the first time from the Sudan. Tick numbers on indigenous breeds of cattle (Bos indicus) were relatively low, ranging between 17.1 and 40.5 per animal. Young cattle grazing with the herd carried significantly fewer ticks than older animals. With the exception ofB. annulatus andR. simus, which have extended their distribution further north into Blue Nile, Gezira and Khartoum Provinces, the distribution patterns of the most important cattle ticks have been relatively unchanged over the past 30 years.