![]() Deer ticks are the most common vectors of this bacterium. Lyme disease is a debilitating disease caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi. The larval feeding stage is responsible for the tick's contraction of most diseases like Lyme disease, while these diseases are transferred to humans and livestock during the nymphal and adult stages. Larval and nymphal deer ticks prefer small hosts and are more likely to feed on rodents than on large animals. Females lay eggs in suitable areas close to vegetation. Eggsĭeer ticks begin life as eggs and develop through larval and nymphal stages before becoming adults. They, too, will feed and molt into adults. Resulting nymphs have eight legs and search again for hosts. Larvae feed for approximately four days before dropping to the ground to molt into nymphs. Six-legged larvae emerge from these eggs and begin to search for a host. However, one female is capable of laying up to 3,000 eggs. Under favorable conditions, they may be capable of developing in less than one year.Īfter laying eggs, female deer ticks die. Development depends on environment and the availability of hosts. Life Cycleĭeer ticks take approximately two years to complete their life cycles. Larvae and nymphs both molt after feeding. They attach themselves to and feed on one host during the larval stage, another during the nymphal stage and a third during their adult stage. Larvae: larvae are less than 1 mm long (about poppy seed sized) and have only 6 legs.Īll three of the deer tick's development stages require blood meals from hosts. Nymphs: Nymphs are between 1-2 mm long (about pin-head sized) with eight legs. In most cases, a deer tick is usually half the size of the common American dog tick.Īdult Bodies & Legs: Like other ticks, their bodies are flattened, and after becoming engorged by a blood meal, the body expands substantially. Females that are engorged with a blood meal appear darker and are about 10 mm long. Unfed adult female blacklegged ticks are approximately 3 - 5 mm long and are colored red and brown. Adult males are smaller than females and are uniformly brown in color. AppearanceĪdult Length & Color: These ticks are brownish in color but may change to rust or brown-red in hue following feeding. Livestock and domestic animals can also be hosts. Humans are considered accidental hosts and may contract Lyme disease from bites. Named for their propensity to feed on white-tailed deer, deer ticks may also feed on other large mammals as hosts, including humans. Deer ticks, primarily found in the eastern half of the United States, are also known as blacklegged ticks, while often mistaken for brown dog ticks.
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