<p align="left"><strong><em>Ornithodoros sawaii </em></strong><strong>Kitaoka and Suzuki<em> </em>(Acari: Ixodida: Argasidae) collected from nest soil and litter of <em>Synthliboramphus</em> <em>antiquus</em> and </strong><strong><em>Hydrobates</em></strong><strong><em> </em></strong><strong><em>monorhis</em></strong><strong>,</strong> <strong>on Chilbal </strong><strong>I</strong><strong>sland, southwestern Jeollanam Province, Republic of Korea   </strong></p>

Abstract

The 65th Medical Brigade and Public Health Command Region-Pacific (Korea), in collaboration with the Migratory Birds Center, National Park Research Institute, conducted a migratory bird tick-borne disease surveillance program on Chilbal Island, a small, remote, uninhabited island in southwestern Jeollanam Province, Republic of Korea (ROK), on 1 and 31 May and 15 September 2014. Ticks were collected from nesting soil and litter of the Ancient Murrelet, Synthliboramphus antiquus, and Swinhoe’s Storm Petrel, Hydrobates monorhis, using Tullgren funnels. A total of 12 Ornithodoros sawaii (2 females, 4 males, and 6 nymphs) were collected from 3/36 (8.3%) S. antiquus and 6/20 (30.0%) H. monorhis nest sites. Ticks were identified morphologically and species determination was confirmed using polymerase chain reaction techniques. This is the first report of the genus Ornithodoros and species O. sawaii from the ROK.