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Prevalence Of Cytauxzoon Felis (Protista: Apicomplexa) In Feral Cats In Russellville Arkansas, Cynthia H. Jacobs

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Abstract

Cytauxzoon felis (C. felis) is a protozoan hemoparasite of domestic and wild felids. Transmitted by ixodid ticks, the sylvatic reservoir for this organism in North America is the bobcat (Lynx rufus) in which the infection is apparently self-limiting. In domestic cats (Felis catus), C. felis causes a highly fatal disease with a distribution that covers much of the central, southcentral and southeastern U.S. and parallels that of the primary vector, the lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum). Interestingly, there appears to be an increased survival rate in domestic cats in the geographic …