The Ixodidae are the family of hard ticks or scale ticks, one of the three families of ticks, consisting of over 700 species. They are known as 'hard ticks' because they have a scutum or hard shield, which the other big family of ticks, the 'soft ticks' (Argasidae), lack. They are ectoparasites of a wide range of host species, and some are vectors of pathogens that can cause human disease.
Nuttalliella namaqua is a tick found in southern Africa from Tanzania to Namibia and South Africa, which is placed in its own family, Nuttalliellidae. It can be distinguished from ixodid ticks and argasid ticks by a combination of characteristics including the position of the stigmata, lack of setae, strongly corrugated integument, and form of the fenestrated plates. It is the most basal lineage of ticks.
Ixodes is a genus of hard-bodied ticks. It includes important disease vectors of animals and humans, and some species inject toxins that can cause paralysis. Some ticks in this genus may transmit the pathogenic bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi responsible for causing Lyme disease. Additional organisms that may be transmitted by Ixodes are parasites from the genus Babesia, which cause babesiosis, and bacteria from the related genus Anaplasma, which cause anaplasmosis.
Amblyomma is a genus of hard ticks. Some are disease vectors, for example the Rocky Mountain spotted fever in Brazil or ehrlichiosis in the United States.
Dermacentor is a genus of ticks in the family Ixodidae, the hard ticks. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution, with native species on all continents except Australia. Most occur in the Nearctic realm.
Rhipicephalus is a genus of ticks in the family Ixodidae, the hard ticks, consisting of about 74 or 75 species. Most are native to tropical Africa.
The Asian blue tick is an economically important tick that parasitises a variety of livestock species especially cattle, on which it is the most economically significant ectoparasite in the world. It is known as the Australian cattle tick, southern cattle tick, Cuban tick, Madagascar blue tick, and Porto Rican Texas fever tick.
Ixodes arboricola, also called the tree-hole tick, is a species of tick that parasitises small passerine birds. It is among the most common species on the house sparrow.
Ticks of domestic animals directly cause poor health and loss of production to their hosts. Ticks also transmit numerous kinds of viruses, bacteria, and protozoa between domestic animals. These microbes cause diseases which can be severely debilitating or fatal to domestic animals, and may also affect humans. Ticks are especially important to domestic animals in tropical and subtropical countries, where the warm climate enables many species to flourish. Also, the large populations of wild animals in warm countries provide a reservoir of ticks and infective microbes that spread to domestic animals. Farmers of livestock animals use many methods to control ticks, and related treatments are used to reduce infestation of companion animals.
Jane Brotherton Walker was a leading 20th century expert in the field of tick taxonomy, particularly in Africa.
Rhipicephalus hoogstraali is a tick found in Djibouti and Somalia. First recognized by Harry Hoogstraal as Rhipicephalus longicoxatus based on an incomplete published description, after discovery of the holotype of R. longicoxatus, it was described and named to honor Hoogstraal in 2009.
Makram Nasri Kaiser (1930–1996) was a medical and veterinary acarologist who was the world's leading authority on ticks of the genus Hyalomma.
Amblyomma javanense is a hard-bodied tick of the genus Amblyomma. It is found in Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia, India, Sri Lanka, Philippines and Thailand. It is the only ectoparasite found on the Manis javanica, Manis crassicaudata and also from Sus scrofa.
Haemaphysalis bispinosa is a hard-bodied tick of the genus Haemaphysalis. It is found in India, Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Pakistan, Nepal, Australia, and Indonesia. It is an obligate ectoparasite of mammals. It is a potential vector of Kyasanur Forest disease virus. These ticks was found parasitized by a chalcid Hunterellus sagarensis in these diseased areas.
Haemaphysalis anomala is a hard-bodied tick of the genus Haemaphysalis. It is found in India, Vietnam and Sri Lanka. It is an obligate ectoparasite of mammals.
Dermacentor reticulatus, also known as the ornate cow tick, ornate dog tick, meadow tick, and marsh tick, is a species of tick from the family Ixodidae. It is the type species for the genus Dermacentor. D. reticulatus is an ornate tick. The female varies in size from 3.8–4.2 mm (unfed) to 10 mm when engorged after feeding. The unfed male is 4.2–4.8 mm long. D. reticulatus is found in Europe and Western Asia, generally in wooded areas.
Amblyomma rhinocerotis is a species of tick belonging to the family Ixodidae. This species occurs in Africa. It is a primarily rhino parasite.
The zebra tick or yellow back tick is a species of hard tick. It is common in the Horn of Africa, with a habitat of the Rift Valley and eastward. It feeds upon a wide variety of species, including livestock, wild mammals, and humans, and can be a vector for various pathogens. The adult male has a distinctive black and ivory ornamentation on its scutum.
Margaropus reidi, the Sudanese beady-legged tick, is an ixodid tick that is parasitic on the Northern giraffe It is one of only three species in the genus Margaropus. The type specimens were collected in Liednhom on the south bank of the Jur River, and at Guar, in the Gual-Nyang Forest, Bahr el Ghazal, South Sudan.
Cosmiomma is a genus of ticks first discovered by Paul Schulze in 1919. It is monospecific, being represented by the single species Cosmiomma hippopotamensis. It was first described in 1843 by Henry Denny from specimens collected from a hippopotamus in Southern Africa, and has been called "one of the most unusual, beautiful, and rare tick species known to the world."
