Seasonal Patterns in the Prevalence and Diversity of Tick-Borne Borrelia burgdorferi Sensu Lato, Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Rickettsia spp. in an Urban Temperate Forest in South Western Slovakia.

In Europe, is the most important vector of tick-borne zoonotic bacteria. It transmits spirochaetes from the sensu lato complex, and spp. Although spatial differences in the prevalence of tick-borne pathogens have been intensively studied, seasonal (within-year) fluctuations in the prevalence of these pathogens within sites are often overlooked. We analyzed the occurrence and seasonal dynamics of in an urban forest in Bratislava, Slovakia. Furthemore, we examined temporal trends in the community structure of s.l., and spp. in questing and bird-feeding ticks. The total prevalence for s.l. in questing was 6.8%, involving six genospecies with the dominance of bird-associated and , and occurred in 5.9%, 5.0% and 0.2% of questing ticks, respectively. In total, 12.5% and 4.4% of bird-feeding ticks carried s.l. and . The total prevalence of s.l. in our study site was two times lower than the mean prevalence for Europe. In contrast, prevalence was significantly higher compared to those in other habitats of Slovakia. Our results imply that tick propagation and the transmission, suppression and seasonal dynamics of tick-borne pathogens at the study site were primarily shaped by abundance and temporal population fluctuations in ruminant and bird hosts.