Monday, December 14, 2015

Case of the Week 376

This week's case includes beautiful (and creepy) photographs and a movie from Dr. Graham Hickling at the University of Tennessee.

The following egg-laying arthropod was observed last month in her natural forest habitat. Identification?




Once you look at the photos, take a look at this video (set to music). It gives part of the answer away, but still leaves you with the task of determining the genus of this organism:
https://vimeo.com/148692758

Enjoy!

6 comments:

Kamran Kadkhoda said...

Engorged female of Ixodes scapularis after leaving a host in Fall to lay a batch of eggs and die off.

Sheldon Campbell said...

The horrific video allows one to easily use the anal groove to identify Ixodes, but it probably wasn't worth the 3AM awakening visualizing this thing.

Unknown said...

-hard tick Ixodidae attach to host for weeks ( adult) or days ( larva and nymph ).
- adult female feed once, drop off host, lays 1000 eggs and die.
-1000 of larvae seed tick quest on tips of vegetation awaiting hosts.
-rest in cooler shaded vegetation to moult and to wait for host.
-life cycle :egg >>larva>> nymph>>adult

Anonymous said...

The engorged female tick in the pictures is challenging to identify. The video helps visualize the anal groove anterior to the anus and is consistent with Ixodes sp.

Florida Fan

MicrOlivier said...

Same answer, this is definitly a tick engorged lying eggs.

Another example of tick lying eggs...
French tick lying eggs

Cheers
MicrOlivier

Anonymous said...

I think Ixodes female as well! Nice Catch!

Lee