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ARS Home » Plains Area » Kerrville, Texas » Knipling-Bushland U.S. Livestock Insects Research Laboratory » Livestock Arthropod Pest Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #398189
Research Project: Management of Ticks of Veterinary Importance

Location: Livestock Arthropod Pest Research Unit

Title: Implementation research for integrated tick control of Rhipicephalus australis (Acari: Ixodidae) through the pasture and cattle management method in New Caledonia

Author
item HUE, THOMAS - Agronomic Institute Of New Caledonien
item WANG, HSIAO-HSUAN - Texas A&M University
item GRANT, WILLIAM - Texas A&M University
item TEEL, PETE - Texas A&M University
item Perez De Leon, Adalberto - Beto

Submitted to: Journal of Integrated Pest Management
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/22/2022
Publication Date: 4/29/2022
Citation: Hue, T., Wang, H., Grant, W.E., Teel, P.D., Perez De Leon, A.A. 2022. Implementation research for integrated tick control of Rhipicephalus australis (Acari: Ixodidae) through the pasture and cattle management method in New Caledonia. Journal of Integrated Pest Management. https://doi.org/10.1093/jipm/pmac011.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1093/jipm/pmac011

Interpretive Summary: The cattle tick scientifically known as Rhipicephalus australis is the most economically important external parasite of cattle in New Caledonia. New methods are needed to deal with the problem of cattle tick populations that are resistant to the chemical acaricides used to control them. Development of the Pasture and Cattle Management (PCM) method is a priority to control R. australis. In this study we collaborated with beef cattle producers and surveyed cattle herds in New Caledonia to understand how to: (1) assess the ability of PCM to reduce acaricide use, and (2) prioritize best practices and define recommendations for producers promoting efficient tick control with minimum acaricide use. Analyses of the data revealed that the number of acaricide treatments decreased from 7.9 to 5.3 per year by using PCM. Six factors involving farm characteristics as well as pasture and herd management recommendations accounted for ˜86% of the variability in number of acaricide treatments applied annually. Relevant farm characteristics included: 1) local annual rainfall; 2) percentage of tick-resistant cattle in the herd; 3) status of acaricide resistance in the herd, and 4) status of internal fences on the farm. Important pasture and herd management recommendations were: 1) duration of tick monitoring efforts, and 2) observation of ticks during the month prior to long-acting acaricide treatments. These results demonstrated the usefulness of the PCM method for integrated control of R. australis infestations while reducing acaricide use to improve beef cattle production in New Caledonia.

Technical Abstract: New Caledonia is a major livestock producing country in the Southwest Pacific where cattle raising for beef production is a primary agricultural activity. The cattle tick, Rhipicephalus australis, is the most economically important ectoparasite of livestock in New Caledonia. Blood feeding by the parasitic stages of R. australis limits the productivity of tick-susceptible European cattle breeds, which are preferred by livestock farmers. Methods that consider the interplay between tick biology and ecology of pastured cattle provide an opportunity for integrated tick management approaches to mitigate the deleterious effects of R. australis on cattle health and production. Research to implement a Pasture and Cattle Management (PCM) method for integrated control of R. australis in New Caledonia is presented here. Principal aspects of the PCM method are described. Optimizing the use of long-acting acaricides contributes to these efforts. Its agroecological foundation affords versatility in the strategic application of practices that conform the PCM method at the farm and agricultural landscape levels. This allows the incorporation of other control technologies like the use of a vaccine against R. australis. Research recommendations to refine integrated R. australis control involving the PCM method for sustainable cattle production in New Caledonia are discussed. Continued research on the biology and ecology of R. australis across the changing agricultural landscape of its geographic range will inform science-based adaptations to the PCM method, which could facilitate its implementation as part of integrated cattle tick management efforts in other semi-extensive cattle management settings.