Presence and Abundance of Chiropteran Ectoparasites of Zoonotic Importance in Abidjan District, Côte d'Ivoire

Aims: The aim of this study is to produce information on the diversity and abundance of ectoparasites in bats in Côte d'Ivoire.

Place and Duration of Study: It was carried out from December 22, 2020, to January 28, 2021, in the Abidjan district, within the forest relics of the Abidjan National Zoo (ZNA) and the Adiopodoumé site of the Institut Pasteur de Côte d'Ivoire (IPCI)

Methodology: The first step was to capture the bats using mist nets and identify them with the help of research assistants. For each bat captured, ectoparasites were collected and identified using the Walker and Ramel keys

Results: In the course of this study, 89 bats were collected, most of them adult (91%) and female (50.6%). Most belonged to the genera Micropteropus (41.6%) and Eidolon (40.4%). Ectoparasites were collected at a rate of 20.22% (+/- 0.187), and identification revealed Nycteribia biarticulata (69.7%) and Ornithodoros erraticus (30.3%), belonging to the Insecta and Arachnida classes respectively. A causal link was established in the univariate analysis (p<5%) between the presence of the parasite and the bat species collected.

Conclusion: These results provide non-exhaustive information on the diversity and abundance of bat ectoparasites in the Abidjan district belonging to the genera Ornithodoros and Nicteribia. These ectoparasites are vectors of zoonoses such as intermittent fever due to Borellia and vectors of animal diseases such as African swine fever. This research needs to be extended to the entire Côte d'Ivoire in order to identify ectoparasite vectors and gain a better understanding of local biodiversity and zoonotic risks (the transmission of diseases from animals to humans).