Tick larvae identification3/10/2024 ![]() In general, ticks only have two body segments-a fused head and abdomen, Williams says. Keep in mind, though, that other small insects can be confused for ticks. Of the 700 species of hard ticks and 200 species of soft ticks found throughout the world, only a few are known to bite and transmit disease to humans. Still, Mather says there are certain features that are unique to each type of tick that can help you sort them out.Īccording to, there are two families of ticks found in the United States: Ixodidae (hard ticks) and Argasidae (soft ticks). If you’re not an entomologist, it can be tricky to identify a tick species. “If a tick is attached, saving the tick can provide additional information to your doctor should you have symptoms,” she says. That’s why it’s a good idea to hold onto the tick, if you can, says Cynthia Lord, Ph.D., an entomologist and researcher at UF/IFAS Florida Medical Entomology Laboratory. “You want to be able to identify what that tick is so that, if you were to get bitten and become sick, you’d have an idea of where to start,” says Ian Williams, technical services manager at Orkin. And, while Lyme disease is the big one many people automatically associate with ticks, there are plenty of other tick-borne diseases to have on your radar as well. “Different types of ticks transmit different types of germs,” says Thomas Mather, Ph.D., director of the University of Rhode Island’s Center for Vector-Borne Disease. ![]() That’s why it’s so crucial to at least have some idea of how to spot the different types of ticks that live in your area. And, unfortunately, there is a range of diseases they can transmit. They may complete this cycle in 2 months, but there are usually only 2 generations per year in the north, and 4 generations per year in the south.It’s easy to assume that a tick is a tick, but there are actually different species of ticks out there. They seek a host dog as soon as possible, but can survive up to 18 months before attachment, after which they engorge 6-50 days and mate. The nymphs then drop off, hide and molt into adults in 12-19 days. They attach again and engorge for 4-9 days, growing to 1/8 in (3 mm) and turning dark gray. In 1-3 weeks they become reddish-brown nymphs with 8 legs. After engorging 3-6 days they enlarge to 1/16 in (2 mm), becoming blue, then drop off to find a place to molt. These “seed ticks” crawl down the walls and attach to a dog, but can go for 8 months without food or water. Eggs hatch in 19-60 days into tiny larvae with 6 legs. The engorged ‘Brown Dog Tick’ female drops off the host dog, but tends to crawl upwards, depositing 1,000-3,000 tiny dark brown eggs in wall or ceiling crevices and cracks, and then she dies. Larvae feeding before September molt promptly and overwinter as 8-legged nymphs those feeding later will molt the following spring. They feed for 3-9 days but only once, usually on small mammals such as mice, chipmunks, voles, etc., but the preferred larval host is the white-footed mouse. Eggs laid in the spring hatch several weeks later into six-legged larvae, which can be found June through September. The lifecycle of the ‘Black Legged Tick’ (Deer Tick) is usually completed in two years. The ‘Brown Dog Tick’ is generally a reddish brown, but gray-blue or olive color when full of blood. Legs, mouthparts and scutum (dorsal shield just behind mouthparts) are dark reddish brown. The adult female ‘Black Legged Tick’ (Deer Tick) body is orange-brown in color, but the abdomen is darker when engorged. It has a flattened body with mouth parts visible from above and the male has tiny pits scattered on its back. The ‘Brown Dog Tick’ is approximately 1/8 in (3 mm) long, but when engorged with blood they are up to 1/2 in (12 mm) long. Adult females are about 1/8" (2.7 mm) long males are smaller by about 1/16"/ 2 mm. Nymphs measure about 1/16" (1.1-1.8mm) long, with 8 legs. Larvae measure about 1/32" (0.7-0.8mm) long, with 6 legs. The ‘Black Legged Tick’ (Deer Tick) body is a flattened oval shape with no hard shell, whose sharply pointed mouthpart is visible when viewed from above. ![]()
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