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your tick ids
I just came across a series of tick pictures and your identifications. You should know that all of the ticks on those pages were hard ticks. If you can see the mouthpart (hypostome) from a dorsal view, then it is a hard tick. Soft ticks always have their “capitulum” (=hypostome and palps) ventral, and from above it is partially or more usually completely concealed. Of course, that trick only works if the mouthpart is present. On tick issues, you are welcome to use www.tickencounter.org as a resource and a referral. I don’t know how many tick “submissions” that you get, but we are trying to encourage just the type of two-way dialogue that you have established with your clients. The Miami infestation is most likely Brown Dog Tick (Rhipicepalus sanguineus) and you were wise to advise a professional pest applicator. These ticks can infest much like fleas and roaches. They usually just take their blood meal from pets. Hope this is useful. Thomas N. Mather, Ph.D.
Professor & Director Center for Vector-Borne Disease
University of Rhode Island
9 East Alumni Avenue, Suite 7
Kingston , RI 02881
tel. 401-874-5616
fax. 401-874-2494

Hi Dr. Mather,
We are happy to post your letter at the top of our Tick Page and hope that our readership will contact your Tick Hotsite.

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