Migratory birds, ticks, and Bartonella

Bartonella spp. infections are considered to be vector-borne zoonoses; ticks are suspected vectors of bartonellae. Migratory birds can disperse ticks infected with zoonotic pathogens such as Rickettsia and tick-borne encephalitis virus and possibly also Bartonella. Thus, in the present study 386 tick specimens collected in spring 2009 from migratory birds on the Mediterranean islands Capri and Antikythera were screened for Bartonella spp. RNA. One or more ticks were found on 2.7% of the birds. Most ticks were Hyalomma rufipes nymphs and larvae with mean infestation rates of 1.7 nymphs and 0.6 larvae per infested bird. Bartonella spp. RNA was not detected in any of the tick specimens.