{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,14]],"date-time":"2026-08-14T09:27:21Z","timestamp":1786699641276,"version":"build-2736575974"},"reference-count":49,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"16","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,14]],"date-time":"2026-08-14T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1786665600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"NextGenerationEU programme","award":["644-01\/24-01\/02"],"award-info":[{"award-number":["644-01\/24-01\/02"]}]}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Animals"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Ticks are hematophagous ectoparasites of major veterinary and public health importance, acting as vectors of numerous pathogens affecting wildlife, domestic animals, and humans. Data on tick species infesting lagomorphs in Croatia remain scarce. This study investigated the species composition and genetic diversity of ticks collected from European brown hares (Lepus europaeus) in Croatia during 2024\u20132025 using morphological and molecular methods. A total of 158 hares from 18 localities were examined, and ticks were detected on 145 individuals, resulting in an infestation prevalence of 91.8%. Morphological identification and molecular analyses revealed nine tick species. The tick community was dominated by Ixodes ricinus (59.1%; n = 821), followed by Ixodes festai (26.8%; n = 372) and Rhipicephalus bursa (9.6%; n = 133), together accounting for more than 95% of all collected ticks. Molecular analyses confirmed species identification and revealed 10 haplotypes of I. ricinus, eight of I. festai, two of I. ventalloi, and one in I. inopinatus. The results demonstrate that European brown hares are important hosts for diverse tick species in Croatia and provide baseline data for future studies on tick ecology, tick-borne pathogens, and wildlife health management.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/ani16162533","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,14]],"date-time":"2026-08-14T08:08:29Z","timestamp":1786694909000},"page":"2533","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Tick Diversity Associated with the European Brown Hare (Lepus europaeus Pallas, 1778) in Croatia: Geographic Patterns and Species Composition"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"16","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0003-4724-4523","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Krunoslav","family":"Pintur","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Wildlife Management and Nature Conservation, Karlovac University of Applied Sciences, Trg J. J. Strossmayera 9, 47000 Karlovac, Croatia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5943-4346","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Tomislav","family":"Dumi\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Wildlife Management and Nature Conservation, Karlovac University of Applied Sciences, Trg J. J. Strossmayera 9, 47000 Karlovac, Croatia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0007-6122-5958","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Ema","family":"Gagovi\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Croatian Veterinary Institute, Savska cesta 143, PP 883, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-7964-7939","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Nera","family":"Fabijani\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Croatian Hunting Association, Vladimira Nazora 63, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Vedran","family":"Slijep\u010devi\u0107","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Wildlife Management and Nature Conservation, Karlovac University of Applied Sciences, Trg J. J. Strossmayera 9, 47000 Karlovac, Croatia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Josip","family":"Gulin","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"National Park Krka, Trg Ivana Pavla II 5, 22000 \u0160ibenik, Croatia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0004-8574-5753","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Marin","family":"Maras","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Wildlife Management and Nature Conservation, Karlovac University of Applied Sciences, Trg J. J. Strossmayera 9, 47000 Karlovac, Croatia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Relja","family":"Beck","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Croatian Veterinary Institute, Savska cesta 143, PP 883, 10000 Zagreb, Croatia"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,8,14]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","unstructured":"Rizzoli, A., Silaghi, C., Obiegala, A., Rudolf, I., Hub\u00e1lek, Z., F\u00f6ldv\u00e1ri, G., Plantard, O., Vayssier-Taussat, M., Bonnet, S., and Spitalsk\u00e1, E. (2014). Ixodes ricinus and Its Transmitted Pathogens in Urban and Peri-Urban Areas in Europe: New Hazards and Relevance for Public Health. Front. 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