Reptile trade and the risk of exotic tick introductions into southern South American countries

Ticks exotic for the Neotropical region were found on Python regius imported into Argentina and Chile. All ticks (7 males and 3 females) were classified as Amblyomma latum Koch, 1844 ( = Aponomma latum). Additionally, four lots comprising 18 males of the Argentinean tortoise tick, Amblyomma argentinae Neumann, 1904, were found on a terrestrial tortoise, Chelonoidis chilensis, and on three terrestrial tortoises (probably C. chilensis) imported to Uruguay presumably from Argentina). These findings alert us to the risk of expanding the distribution of reptile parasites and their diseases into regions previously free of these parasites.