Ethnobotanicals for Management of the Brown Ear Tick Rhipicephalus Appendiculatus Inwester N Kenya

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Ethnobotanicals for Management of the Brown Ear Tick Rhipicephalus Appendiculatus Inwester N Kenya Ethnobotanicals for management of the brown ear tick Rhipicephalus appendiculatus inwester n Kenya Wycliffe Wanzala 4^1w Promotoren: Prof. dr.J.C .va nLentere n Hoogleraar ind eEntomologie , Wageningen Universiteit Co-promotoren: Prof. dr.ir .W .Takke n Persoonlijk Hoogleraar bij deleerstoelgroe p Medische enVeterinair e Entomologie, Wageningen Universiteit Prof.A .Hassanal i International Centre ofInsec t Physiology andEcology , Kenya Promotiecommissie: Universiteit vanAmsterda m Prof. dr.ir .M.W . Sabelis Wageningen Universiteit Prof. dr.H.H.T . Prins Plant Research International, Dr. W.J.d eKoge l Wageningen Universiteit andResearc h Centrum Prof. dr.ir .A.J .va nde rZijp p Wageningen Universiteit Dit onderzoek isuitgevoer d binnen deC Td eWi t onderzoeksschool Production Ecology andResourc e Conservation Wycliffe Wanzala Ethnobotanicals for management of the brown ear tick Rhipicephalus appendiculatus in western Kenya Proefschrift ter verkrijging van de graad van doctor op gezag van de rector magnificus van Wageningen Universiteit Prof. dr. M.J. Kropff in het openbaar te verdedigen opwoensda g 3maart , 2009 des namiddags te vier uur in de Aula Wanzala, W. (2009) Ethnobotanicals for management of the brown ear tickRhipicephalus appendiculatus in western Kenya PhD thesis Wageningen University - with references - with summaries in Dutch and English ISBN 978-90-8585-317-6 Summary This thesis describes the results of a study to assess the effect of ethnobotanical products on the behaviour of the brown ear tick Rhipicephalus appendiculatus, the main vector of East Coast fever in sub-Saharan Africa. Ethnoknowledge of the Bukusu people in western Kenya on tick control and management was evaluated to identify plants that affect live­ stock ticks, using participatory action research approaches. More than 150 plant species spread over 110 genera and 51 families were identified and documented. From these, eight plants were selected and their essential oils extracted and used for screening in the labora­ tory on their behavioural effects on ticks. From these, the plants Tagetesminuta and Titho- nia diversifolia were chosen for further studies. The essential oils of these two plants were further extracted and used in laboratory and field bioassays. From the laboratory assay, using a dual-choice apparatus, it was found that essential oils of both T. minuta and T. diversifolia affect tick climbing behaviour, representing a repellent response. Dose response effects were observed. On steers, differential effects to the essential oils were observed with R. appendiculatus, which prefer to feed mainly inside the ears of the host animal. It was found that treatment of the ear region with the essential oils of both T.minuta and T.diversifolia significantly deterred ticks from reaching the ear. The essential oils of T. minuta and T. diversifolia were evaluated in the field and signifi­ cantly shown to affect R. appendiculatus and other ticks naturally attached to the host ani­ mals. The essential oil ofT. minuta affects R. appendiculatus and other ticks more than the essential oil of T. diversifolia. The results suggest the potential for essential oils to be incorporated in the on-host "push" and "push-pull" strategy for the control and management of R. appendiculatus, other affected livestock ticks and associated tick-borne diseases among the resource- limited livestock farming community in tropical Africa. Table of Contents 1 General introduction 11 Part I Use of ethnobotanicals for tick control 2 Traditional knowledge on tick control within the Bukusu community in Bungoma district, western Kenya 41 Part IILaborator y evaluation of essential oils 3 Repellent activities of essential oils of indigenous plants against the brown ear tick Rhipicephalus appendiculatus 59 4 Attractive and repellent host odours guide tickst o their respective feeding sites 75 5 Dual and no-choice assays on the effect ofth e essential oil of Tagetesminuta on Rhipicephalus appendiculatus 83 PartII I Field evaluation of essential oils 6 The effect of essential oils of Tagetesminuta and Tithoniadiversifolia on on-host behaviour ofth e brown ear tickRhipicephalus appendiculatus 97 7 Essential oils of Tagetesminuta and Tithoniadiversifolia affect orientation to cattle and attachment sitepreferenc e ofth e brown ear tick, Rhipicephalus appendiculatus 109 8 Essential oils of indigenous plants protect livestock from infestations with Rhip­ icephalus appendiculatus and other tick species in herds grazing in natural pastures inKeny a 121 9 Summarizing discussion 133 Appendix 1 143 Appendix 2 163 References 171 Samenvatting 223 Acknowledgements 225 Curriculum vitae 227 Publications 229 General introduction 1 General Introduction Research concept Globally, knowledge, skills, innovations, techniques and practices of indigenous and local communities have evolved so well over human generations that they are inherent in peo­ ple's cultural life. These centuries' old practical ethnoknowledge and cumulative ethnoex- periences have been acquired by trial and error, which has caused many a fatality in the process (Le Strange, 1977). The evolution of ethnoknowledge involved the invention and development of ethnoremedies for almost every existing problem affecting humans and their livestock (Marina et al., 2001; Gueye, 2002). Succeeding generations and civiliza­ tions improved upon these ethnoremedies to suit their local needs and aspirations and to ensure that they passed them on to the succeeding civilization (Marina et al., 2001). Today, indigenous knowledge1 is a resource to facilitate sustainable development and improve the standards of living of the poor people (IK and DM, 2004; Akall, 2003). Indigenous know­ ledge is considered an underutilized source of information that may be used to foster agri­ cultural and economic development in less developed countries (Singh, 2002; Akall, 2003). In tropical Africa, livestock farming is seriously affected by many indigenous infec­ tious diseases. These diseases are a major constraint to sustainable rural livelihoods (Wanyangu et al., 1996). Many of these diseases are transmitted by ticks, which serve as disease vectors (Norval et al., 1992). In the course of many centuries, African livestock farmers have developed ethnoknowledge on various methods of tick-borne disease control and management, for instance by selecting plants that serve as pharmaceuticals or as anti- tick substances (Marina et al., 2001). However, few studies have been done to confirm the underlying science ofthes e community-specific ethnobotanical products. In the current thesis, the ethnoknowledge of the Bukusu people in western Kenya on tick control and management is evaluated. This knowledge is integrated with the con­ ventional knowledge of on-host behaviour of the brown ear tick Rhipicephalus appendicu- latus Neumann and considered for developing an effective on-host tick control and man­ agement strategy. The studies include laboratory and field evaluation of strategic deploy­ ment of essential oils with repellent effects designed to intercept foraging and attachment behaviour of R. appendiculatus by masking host-derived attractants. By comparing the repellent effects of selected essential oils,th e impact ofth e essential oils with the strongest effect on tickbehaviou r is evaluated, sotha t effective protection can be afforded. 'Thesu mtota l ofth eknowledge ,technique s and skills,whic h people ina particula r geographicare a possess and enable them to get the most out of their environment. Most of these ethnoknowledge practices,technique s and skillshav ebee npasse dfrom earlie r generationsuncriticall ybu t individual menan d women in each new generation adapt and add to thisbod y of ethnoknowledge, techniques andskill si na constan t adjustment tochangin gcircumstance s andenvironmenta l conditions.The yi n turnpas s onth ebod y ofth eethnoknowledge , techniques and skills intact toth enex t generation,i n an effort toprovid e themwit h survival strategies. Indigenous knowledge evolves in response toth e changing environmental conditions including exposure to more formal knowledge systems (CTA, 2008). 11 Chapter 1 Fig. 1.1. The current and future predictedprobabilit yo fth eoccur ­ N rence of the R. appendiculatus in sub-Saharan Africa obtained by usingth epredictiv e speciesmode l + (Erasmus et al., 2002) and the DARLAM climate surfaces model: (a) current, (b) future- 2030. (Adopted from Olwoch et al.,2008 ) IPresenc erecord s of ' Rhipicq>PutfU5 appendiculctus Predicted distributionfo r(a ) currentand(b ) future (in2030 ) Geographical distribution ofRhipicephalus appendiculatus and related rhipicephalids Rhipicephalid species occur in Eurasia and northern Africa (15 species) and in sub- Saharan Africa (-55 species) (Walker et al., 2003). The distribution of R. appendiculatus and other rhipicephalids in Africa is by no means continuous, even in those countries in which they are known to occur commonly (Fig. 1.1). Their occurrence is influenced by several factors, the most important of which are climate, vegetation and host availability (Norval et al., 1992). Using a predictive species model (Erasmus et al., 2002) and DAR­ LAM climate surfaces model (Olwoch et al., 2008) R. appendiculatus distribution in sub- Sharan Africa is shown in Fig. 1.1. In Kenya, the CLIMEX model was used to calculate the ecoclimatic index (EI), which shows the coincidence of distribution pattern of the dairy cattle with that of R. appendiculatus (Fig. 1.2).I n Fig. 1.2,ther e is a
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