Soft and Hard TicksIDENTIFICATION POINTS

Identification Points• Length of mouthparts

• Eyes or eyeless

• Conscutum ornate or inornate

• Colour of legs

• Festoons or no festoons

• Anal plates or no anal plates

Hard Ticks

Mouth Parts (Hard Ticks)

IXODES

Palps Long & Slender

Color Pattern Absent

Eyes Absent

Festoones Absent

Anal Groove

Adanal Plates Several flat ventral plates

Legs Slender & Uniform Color

Other

AMBLYOMMAPalps Long

Colour Pattern Present

Eyes Flat-Convex

Festoones Present & ventral scutes

Anal Groove

Adanal Plates Platelets

Legs Annulated

Other

HYALOMMA

Palps Long

Colour Pattern Absent

Eyes Convex

Festoones Present (Some species reduced in number)

Anal Groove

Adanal Plates Anals, Accessory & Sub-Anals

Legs Annulated

Other

DERMACENTOR

Palps Medium & Broad

Colour Pattern Present

Eyes Present

Festoones Present

Anal Groove

Adanal Plates Absent

Legs Uniform Color

Other Enlarged Coxa 4

RHIPICEPHALUS

Palps Medium

Colour Pattern Absent

Eyes Flat-Convex

Festoones Present

Anal Groove

Adanal Plates Anals & Accessory +/-

Legs Uniform Color

Other Caudal Process +/-

BOOPHILUS

Palps Short

Colour Pattern Absent

Eyes Present (Indistinct)

Festoones Absent

Anal Groove

Adanal Plates Anals & Accessory

Legs Slender, Yellow, Slightly be added

Other Caudal process absent

HAEMAPHYSALIS

Palps Short, 2nd segment laterally extended

Colour Pattern Absent

Eyes Absent

Festoones Present ( Some species reduced in numbers

Anal Groove

Adanal Plates Absent

Legs Slender & Uniform color

Other

Margaropus• Mouthparts very short

• Conscutum thin and transparent and the dark pattern of the caeca can be seen from above

• Eyes present but not conspicuous

• No festoons

• Adanal plates on males well developed

• Banded legs

• The segments of the fourth pair of legs in males are markedly enlarged

• One-host ticks

Rhipicentor• Mouthparts of medium length

• Eyes present

• Festoons present

• Adanal plates absent

• Three-host ticks

Soft ticks

Argas• Mouthparts recessed ventrally and not visible from above (except in larvae)

• Eyes absent

• Spiracular plate postero-laterally between 3rd and 4th pair of legs

• Numerous symmetrically arranged discs on dorsal side of body

• Several nymphal stages

Otobius• Dark, violin-shaped adults

• Mouthparts recessed ventrally and not visible from above (except in larvae)

• No lateral suture line on adults

• Nymphs diamond-shaped

• Larvae pear-shaped with clearly visibly anteriorly projecting mouthparts

Ornithodoros• Leathery-mammillated integument

• Mouthparts recessed ventrally and not visible from above (except in larvae)

• Body margin rounded

• Supra-coxal fold

• Eyes absent or two pairs in the supra-coxal fold

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