Ticks

(Part 2 Study Guide, p.77)

Mark Fox

Royal Veterinary College, University of London, UK

Phylum Class Order
Arthropoda Insecta Diptera (Flies)
Siphonaptera (Fleas)
Phthiraptera (Lice)
Arachnida Acarina (Ticks and mites)
TICKS

General importance
Major cause of disease and production loss (US$7
billion annually worldwide):

• Blood losses (large numbers → anaemia)

• Tick worry (prevent animals feeding)
• Disease transmission
• Tick paralysis (ascending motor paralysis)
• Secondary infection / blowfly strike (at bite site)
• Production losses (farm animals)
TICKS

Divided on the basis of their MORPHOLOGY into:

• HARD ticks
Important in temperate and warmer climates

• SOFT ticks
More important in warmer climates
TICKS

Identification - HARD ticks

• SCUTUM - hard dorsal

covering
• Prominent mouth-parts

• FESTOONS (or notches)

may be present
• ORNATE ticks have
coloured patches

Male hard tick

TICKS

Identification - HARD ticks

• SCUTUM - hard dorsal

covering
• Prominent mouth-parts

• FESTOONS (or notches)

may be present
• ORNATE ticks have
coloured patches

Female hard tick

TICKS

Identification - HARD ticks (cont.)

• BODY WALL -
convoluted to
accommodate
blood meal (esp.
female ticks)
TICKS

Identification - SOFT ticks

• Scutum – ABSENT
• Mouthparts – NOT
visible from dorsal
surface
• Do NOT swell much
(feed little and often)

Soft tick (dorsal view)

TICKS

Identification - SOFT ticks

• Scutum – ABSENT
• Mouthparts – NOT
visible from dorsal
surface
• Do NOT swell much
(feed little and often)

Soft tick (ventral view)

TICKS

Mouthparts
TICKS

Mouthparts

• PALPS:
(red arrows)
sensory organs

• CHELICERAE:
puncture skin

• HYPOSTOME:
(green arrows)
tube for sucking
host blood,
backward-
pointing teeth
TICKS

Feeding
TICKS

Feeding

• Tick stands upright

• Chelicerae cut through skin →
pool of blood
• Hypostome inserted deep into skin
• Mouthparts CEMENTED in place
• Tick feeds continuously + injects
saliva (contains substances that 
host inflammatory response, 
permeability of blood vessels →
free flow of blood)
http://www.empirestatelymediseaseassociation.org/ticks/
Ticks-weapons.jpg
TICK LIFE CYCLE (months – years)

Adult tick

Nymphs Egg laying

Larvae Larva
TICK LIFE CYCLES

Hard ticks

Classified according to number of different hosts to

which they attach during their life cycle:

• ONE-host ticks: each stage (larva + nymph +

adult) feed on one host, e.g. Boophilus
 Engorged
female

Adult male

Host 1

Larva Nymph

Eggs
Nymph Adult
Egg
TICK LIFE CYCLES

Hard ticks

Classified according to number of different hosts to

which they attach during their life cycle:

• ONE-host ticks: each stage (larva + nymph +

adult) feed on one host, e.g. Boophilus

• TWO-host ticks: larvae + nymphs feed on one

host; adult ticks on a second host, e.g. Hyalomma
 Engorged
female

Adult
Host 1 Host 2 male
Nymph Adult

Larva
Adult Eggs

Egg
TICK LIFE CYCLES

Hard ticks

Classified according to number of different hosts to

which they attach during their life cycle:

• ONE-host ticks: each stage (larva + nymph +

adult) feed on one host, e.g. Boophilus

• TWO-host ticks: larvae + nymphs feed on one

host; adult ticks on a second host, e.g. Hyalomma

• THREE-host ticks: each stage feeds + develops

on a different host, i.e. three hosts, e.g. Ixodes
 Engorged
female
Adult
male

Host 1 Host 2 Host 3

Adult
Nymph
Larva
Adult
Nymph Eggs
Larva

Egg
TICK LIFE CYCLES

Hard ticks

Classified according to number of different hosts to

which they attach during their life cycle:

• ONE-host ticks: each stage (larva + nymph +

adult) feed on one host, e.g. Boophilus

• TWO-host ticks: larvae + nymphs feed on one

host; adult ticks on a second host, e.g. Hyalomma

• THREE-host ticks: each stage feeds + develops

on a different host, i.e. three hosts, e.g. Ixodes

• Don’t confuse terms “1-, 2- and 3-host tick” with

host specificity
TICK LIFE CYCLES

Soft ticks

• NOT classified like hard ticks

• Feed little and often on many hosts
DISEASE TRANSMISSION

Trans-STADIAL transmission

• Infectious agent ingested during feeding by larva

• Passed on from one host to the next (in 2- & 3-host ticks)
as tick develops to nymph + adult
• NOT passed onto next generation via the egg

Larva Nymph Adult Eggs

DISEASE TRANSMISSION

Trans-OVARIAL transmission

• Infectious agent is passed from one generation to the next

through the egg, e.g. Babesia spp.

Adult Eggs

Larva Nymph Adult

HARD TICKS - UK
HARD TICKS - UK

Ixodes spp. (3-host ticks)

• Worldwide
• I. ricinus, most important tick in UK
• Distribution: western UK (mainly)
• Wide host range
Ixodes sp.
• Vector for HUMAN disease:
Lyme disease (humans, dogs)
• Vector for ANIMAL disease:
Bovine babesiosis, louping ill,
tickborne fever & tick pyaemia
• Paralysis in humans, dogs
(warmer climates only) Babesia
Louping Ill
HARD TICKS - UK

Other tick species

• Ixodes canisuga
Dogs (kennels)

• Ixodes hexagonus
Hedgehogs (also cats, dogs, ferrets,
weasels, etc.) Dog kennels

• Haemaphysalis sp.
Cattle, uncommon (transmits
Babesia major, non-pathogenic)

• Dermacentor sp.
Rare (SW England, Essex, Wales)

Hedgehog
HARD TICKS - UK

Epidemiology (Ixodes ricinus)

• THREE-host tick
• Life cycle: 3 years (range, 2-7 years)
• Ticks feed for a few DAYS each year
• MOST of the time – on the ground Ixodes ricinus

• Need high RH (>90%) – in matted

vegetation (e.g. rough grazing,
hedgerows)

Rough grazing
HARD TICKS - UK

Epidemiology (Ixodes ricinus)

• Tick activity seasonal, e.g. spring (and autumn)

• Dependent on temperature + relative humidity

Ticks on
Warmer temperatures 
pasture
 speed of development
of tick LC stages

Winter Spring Summer Autumn

HARD TICKS - OVERSEAS
HARD TICKS - OVERSEAS

Amblyomma spp. (3-host ticks)

• Warmer climates, worldwide

• Vectors for heartwater
(Cowdria ruminantium,
Africa); also, Q-fever, Rocky
Mountain Spotted fever in
southern USA

Amblyomma sp.
HARD TICKS - OVERSEAS

Boophilus spp. (1-host ticks)

• Warmer climates worldwide, except

Europe
• Vectors for Babesia and Anaplasma spp.
in cattle

Boophilus spp.
HARD TICKS - OVERSEAS

Dermacentor spp. (3-host ticks)

Vectors for
• viral (tickborne encephalitis,
Colorado tick fever),
• rickettsial (Rocky Mountain
Spotted fever, bovine
anaplasmosis),
• bacterial (tularaemia) and
• protozoal (babesiosis) diseases.

Dermacentor sp.
HARD TICKS - OVERSEAS

Hyalomma spp. (2 / 3-host ticks)

• Warmer climates, Old World

• Wide host range
• Vectors for Theileria and
Babesia spp.
• H. aegyptium found on
tortoises (Africa; pet shops,
UK)

Hyalomma sp.
HARD TICKS - OVERSEAS

Rhipicephalus spp. (2 / 3-host ticks)

• Warmer climates worldwide

• Vectors for Theileria parva (East
Coast Fever), Babesia bigemina
(ruminants, Africa), B. canis,
Ehrlichia canis (canine
pancytopenia)
• Paralysis in livestock

Rhipicephalus sp.
SOFT TICKS
SOFT TICKS

Argas spp.

• Infect birds in warmer climates

(also humans)
• A. persicus, poultry tick (or
“tampan”), lives in crevices in
poultry houses
• Feeds at night → production
loss + death (large numbers)
• Found on migratory birds in
temperate regions
Argas sp.
SOFT TICKS

Argas spp.

• Infect birds in warmer climates

(also humans)
• A. persicus, poultry tick (or
“tampan”), lives in crevices in
poultry houses
• Feeds at night → production
loss + death (large numbers)
• Found on migratory birds in
temperate regions
EPIDEMIOLOGY

Tropical / sub-tropical climates

• Ticks may be active all year round

• If limited vegetation mat → activity influenced by seasonal
rainfall + vegetation transpiration ( RH)

Ticks on No distinct seasonal rainfall

pasture

Winter Spring Summer Autumn

EPIDEMIOLOGY

Tropical / sub-tropical climates

• Ticks may be active all year round

• If limited vegetation mat → activity influenced by seasonal
rainfall + vegetation transpiration ( RH)

Ticks on Distinct seasonal rainfall

pasture (Spring + late autumn / winter)

Winter Spring Summer Autumn

PRINCIPLES OF TICK CONTROL
PRINCIPLES OF TICK CONTROL

Integrated parasite control

• Parasite control programmes that do not rely

solely on drug treatment
• Example: tick control
PRINCIPLES OF TICK CONTROL

Kill ticks on ground

• By altering microclimate: pasture improvement, e.g. cultivation,

drainage
• B
By starving: “spelling” pasture
(livestock removed); useful only
if ticks don’t feed on other hosts
• By burning: e.g. during dry
period before rainy season

Field burning
PRINCIPLES OF TICK CONTROL

Separate host from infection

• Stock management: remove

stock from tick-infected areas
when ticks are active
• Fencing: fence off infested
pastures

Fencing off rough pasture

PRINCIPLES OF TICK CONTROL

Kill ticks on host

• Acaricides: dipping, spraying, pour-on formulations

Dipping Spraying
PRINCIPLES OF TICK CONTROL

Enhance host resistance

• Stock hybridisation: e.g. Bos indicus (humped breeds) x

Bos taurus (European breeds). Heritability of resistance to
ticks is higher in humped breeds than European breeds

Bos indicus Bos taurus

PRINCIPLES OF TICK CONTROL

Enhance host resistance (cont.)

• Vaccination: a vaccine is now used in Australia for Boophilus

microplus control → raises antibodies against “hidden
antigens” in the tick’s gut
 TICK VACCINE

“Hidden” antigen

Salivary antigen
 TICK VACCINE

“Hidden” antigen

Hidden Ag
 TICK VACCINE

Ab
 TICK VACCINE

Ab
PRINCIPLES OF TICK CONTROL

Enhance host resistance (cont.)

• Vaccination: a vaccine is now used in Australia for

Boophilus microplus control → raises antibodies
against “hidden antigens” in the tick’s gut
• What effect do these antibodies have on the tick?
PRINCIPLES OF TICK CONTROL

Enhance host resistance (cont.)

• Vaccination: a vaccine is now used in Australia for

Boophilus microplus control → raises antibodies
against “hidden antigens” in the tick’s gut
• What effect do these antibodies have on the tick?
• Find out … in the small group, problem-solving
class!