Ticks species (Ixodida) in the Summit Municipal Park and adjacent areas,Panama City,Panama

From September 2007 to September 2009, we studied the species of ticks present in the Summit Municipal Park. Ticks were extracted from zoo animals, free-living wild mammals and reptiles trapped, dead mammals on the roads and environment (ground and zoo burrows). A total of 2,649 ticks were collected: 2,167 immature stages (1,345 larvae and 822 nymphs) and 482 adults. Seventeen species were identified: Ornithodoros puertorricensis (Argasidae), Amblyomma auricularium, A. cajennense, A. calcaratum, A. dissimile, A. geayi, A. naponense, A. nodosum, A. oblongoguttatum, A. ovale, A. pecarium, A. sabanerae, A. tapirellum, A. varium, Ixodes luciae, Haemaphysalis juxtakochi and Rhipicephalus sanguineus (Ixodidae), representing 36% of the species reported in Panama. Amblyomma ovale was the species most commonly infesting animals from the zoo.