Tuesday, June 21, 2016

Case of the Week 401

This week's case is in honor of Father's Day, which was just 2 days ago, as well as Mother's Day, which was in May.

The following were submitted to my laboratory for identification. The larger of the 2 arthropods was still alive. Identification?
Here are some close-up shots:





 Thanks to Emily Fernholz for taking these gorgeous photos!


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5 comments:

  1. Dan MilnerJune 21, 2016 at 1:50 PM

    Such an adorable family! These soft ticks are not usually a problem in my neighborhood (New England) but can be quite a treacherous fiend in the western mountains of the US. Their cousin's, however, cause plenty of pain (including joint) in my neck of the tick-infested woods.

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  2. Sheldon CampbellJune 21, 2016 at 2:12 PM

    Mommy and Daddy Dermacentor; not soft ticks, due to the visible mouthparts from above, and the scutum -- filling the entire back of the male.

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  3. LyricJune 21, 2016 at 3:13 PM

    Dermacentor variabilis! Hard ticks!

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  4. AnonymousJune 21, 2016 at 7:20 PM

    For sure an engorged female and male hard tick, they are quite prolific. At this I would go with previous identifications of Dermacentor, though a close up of the head parts would make the job a little easier.

    Florida Fan

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  5. JonJune 22, 2016 at 10:16 AM

    Definitely Mom and Dad Dermacentor. Without a good shot of the spiracular plates or collection location, I wouldn't want to hazard a species ID.

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