Baseline biodiversity assessment of South Texas small mammals and host-associated hard ticks with no detection of selected tick-borne pathogens

Baseline biodiversity surveys are necessary to assess organismal diversity across spatial and temporal scales. These surveys can be particularly useful for monitoring changes in organismal diversity and pathogen spread in response to climate change. Arthropod vectors such as ticks are susceptible to geographic range shifts with a warming climate, potentially resulting in the expansion of risk areas for vector-borne disease. Biodiversity data are deficient from South Texas, which is particularly concerning given the abundance of wildlife and livestock that may be important in perpetuating tick and pathogen populations. We performed a baseline biodiversity assessment of small mammals, ticks, and tick-borne pathogens in South Texas using a combination of fieldwork, collections-based research, and molecular approaches. We recorded 19 species of small mammals and 3 species of ticks, and we detected no tick-borne pathogens belonging to the genera Borrelia or Rickettsia in the ticks or mammals. Given the continued emergence of tick-borne disease, we recommend collaborations with natural history collections and private landowners interested in land stewardship so researchers can develop a better understanding of changing small mammal, tick, and pathogen diversity with implications for human and veterinary health in this region of Texas.