Ticks as Vectors of Tick-Borne Encephalitis (TBE) Virus in Europe

Abstract

In the northern coniferous and temperate deciduous forest which spreads from west of the Urals to the Atlantic Ocean, the common tick is Ixodes ricinus (Fig. 1). This tick is the main vector of TBE virus western subtype in the European part of the USSR, Scandinavian countries, Western, Central and Southern Europe and possibly also in Greece and Turkey. We found that the other tick-species — Haemaphysalis concinna, H. inermis, H. punctata, Ixodes hexagonus, Dermacentor marginatus and D. reticulatus — only acted exceptionally as vectors in certain biomes or areas.