Doubts and Disputes (D & D) on the Susceptibility of Camels to Tick-borne Diseases

Abstract

Camels (Dromedaries or Bactrian) are well known as tick hosts harouring numbers of species of hard ticks. Camels are considered to have an important role in ticks’ population dynamics as they have large surfaces for tick feeding, they can live in different geographical areas and bear different climatic changes. Although different species of ticks were known to infest camels, Hyalomma dromedarii represents between 50 to 90% of these species and referred to as camel tick. Concerning the susceptibility of camels to the different tick-borne diseases including theileriosis, babesiosis, anplasmosis and ehrlichiosis (heartwater), there are great disputes between a number of scientists and experts. Uilenberge (a well-known German expert) basing on his studies in the Sudan and Nigeria and his observations on other studies believes that camels are not susceptible to the different tick-borne diseases. ...