Natural Attachment Duration of Adult Female Ticks Ixodes Uriae (Acari: Ixodidae) on Free-Living Adult Black-Legged Kittiwakes Rissa Tridactyla

An investigation into the attachment duration of the tick Ixodes uriae on free-living adult black-legged kittiwakes Rissa tridactyla was carried out at a colony in southeast Scotland. Adult kittiwakes (n = 14) were caught and searched for ticks. Newly attached ticks (n = 31) were marked as was the bird before its release. These birds were recaptured at intervals of two to seven days and the presence or absence of the tick was recorded. The median attachment duration was estimated as 7.7 days (SE = 0.38) and estimated times for 5% and 95% of ticks to become detached were 5.22 days (SE = 0.67) and 9.51 days (SE = 0.58) respectively. Information on tick attachment duration is essential for the development of accurate models of tick population dynamics and patterns of disease transmission.