In the present study, we attempted to detect Rickettsia 1'mponica DNA from ixodid ticks by the PCR technique. The seasonal occurrence of ixodid ticks was also examined in the endemic area of Japanese spotted fever, Ixodid ticks were cellected at 14 sites, Futagawa (two sites>, Uto, Arahira, Kamitakakuma (two sites), Onohara, Yadorihara (tour sites) and Kamikawa (three sites), on the Osumi Peninsula, Kagoshirna Prefecture in May and June 2001, and also collected additionally at Onohara and

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... wa in May 2002. A total of 767 ixodid ticks was collected. They were identified as three genera and eight species as follows: Hdemmphysalis fiava, I[ fornzosensis, ll] longiconzis, Rl hystn'cis, lltodes ovatus, L nipPonensis, L turdus, and Amblyomma testudinarium, U flava and U longicornis seemed to be the dominant species in the survey areas, With a primer pair Rl, R2, which amplifies the genomic DNA from the spotted fever group rickettsiae, an approximately 540 bp fragment was amplified from 15 samples of six sites; El fiava (seven samples), Hl longicomis (three samples), Hl hystricis (four samples) and A. testudinarium (one sample). With a primer pair Rj5, RjlO, which amplifies the genomic DNA only from R. J'mponica, a 357 bp fragment was amplified from four samples of three sites; Il flava (three samples) and Hl hystricis (one sample). Hl fldva seems to be the most important vector tick for