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Genus APONOMMA Neumann, 1899
The genus Aponomma is a fairly homogeneous group of species very closely related to Amblyomma. Recently, Horak et al. (2002) included most Aponomma species in the genus Amblyomma. They also described the genus Bothriocroton to include the “primitive” Australian species Ap. auruginans, Ap. concolor, Ap. glebopalma, Ap. hydrosauri, and Ap. decorosum. In this book, the genus Aponomma is understood according to the traditional concept. Almost all Aponomma species parasitize reptiles, such as snakes, lizards, and tuatara. Only 4 species have adapted to feed on primitive Australian mammals, the monotremes and marsupials. Although Aponomma is a “reptile” genus, it contains no species feeding on tortoises (there are quite a few such species in the genus Amblyomma). All species of the genus, excluding A. elaphense (in North America), are distributed in the tropical zone of the Old World and Australia. In Australia, they reach the temperate zone and the 40th parallel. In south-eastern Australia, there is a centre of species diversity of the genus Aponomma. The biology of ticks in this genus is very poorly known. Nymphs and larvae are found on the same hosts as imagines, but considerably less often. It is possible that they can parasitize animals other than reptiles. The developmental cycle is apparently three-host, though according to our observations and literature data, part of larvae and nymphs molt on the body of the host.
1. Aponomma auruginans Schulze, 1936
 Map 46 Australia (New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, and Flinders Islands). It is apparently a specific parasite of the wombats Vombat ursinus and Lasiorhinus latifrons. Literature: Roberts (1970), Kaufman (1972).
2. Aponomma concolor Neumann, 1899
 Map 61 Australia (Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia, and Tasmania). It is apparently a specific parasite of echidnas Tachyglosus aculeatus and T. setosus. Literature: Roberts (1970), Kaufman (1972).
3. Aponomma decorosum (Koch, 1867) ?Aponomma undatum (Fabricius, 1775)
Map 61 Australia (Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and South Australia). Principal hosts are the monitors Varanus gouldii and V. varius. Ticks were also found on a lizard, a python, and an echidna. Literature: Roberts (1970).
4. Aponomma elaphense Price, 1959
 Map 49 USA (Texas and New Mexico) and Mexico. All stages feed on the snake Elaphe subocularis. Literature: Keirans and Degenhardt (1985), Degenhardt (1986).
5. Aponomma exornatum (Koch, 1844) ?Aponomma arcanum (Karsch, 1879)
 Map 19 Cameroon, São Tomé, Príncipe, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Djibouti, Somalia, as well as from Zaire and Kenya to the south as far as the Republic of South Africa; Senegal (?), Cote d’Ivoire (?), and Ghana (?). Principal hosts of all stages are monitors. Ticks are also found on other reptiles, and occasionally on mammals. Immature ticks, especially larvae, are found on hosts considerably less often than adults. Literature: Kaufman (1972), Walker (1991).
6. Aponomma fimbriatum (Koch, 1844)
Map 19 Australia, Indonesia (Kalimantan and Sulawesi), Philippines, New Guinea, and islands in the south-western Pacific Ocean – Admiralty, Bismarck, New Britain (unpublished data), and Solomon. All stages feed on various monitors and snakes. There are also collections from mammals and birds. Note: A. fimbriatum and A. trimaculatum are very closely related, there are no reliable diagnostic features, and so data on their distribution should be treated with care. Literature: Kaufman (1972), Hoogstraal (1982), Petney and Keirans (1996b).
7. Aponomma flavomaculatum (Lucas, 1846) ?Aponomma inopinatum Santos Dias, 1989
 Map 7 West and Central Africa from Mauritania and Senegal to Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Central African Republic, and Cameroon. |