Page 41 - Outdoor Oklahoma Magazine Mar-Apr2023

“First, they’re a food source. We know dif-
ferent reptiles, amphibians and birds feed on JAMES GATHANY/CDC Lone Star Tick (Amblyomma americanum)
them. Second, they can serve as a type of natu-
ral control for wildlife populations because they
can carry and transmit diseases. Third, they can
be thought of as an ecological indicator of other
wildlife populations and their relationships. An
increase in the tick population could indicate
an increase in a host (species), like mice. That
increase could be due to a decrease in preda-
tors, like snakes or carnivores.”

THE TICK LIFE CYCLE
As part of her early research, Farquhar
Adult Unfed Female Adult Engorged Female
learned about the ecology of Oklahoma’s ticks
and their different stages of life.
“There are a few alternate life cycles, but the
normal process starts when a batch of eggs Similar to the larval tick, the nymph must
hatches into the larval form, or seed ticks. find a host and take a blood meal. Nymphs can
Sometimes we call this mass of seed ticks a feed for three or four days if left undisturbed.
tick bomb. If you walk by the tick bomb, you Once they drop off the host, they again molt
can get hundreds of tiny ticks on you.” and become adult ticks.
Once the larval tick, or seed tick, finds a host it “Just like the larval and nymph stages, the
takes a blood meal. Larva can remain attached to adult tick must also take a blood meal. Once
the host for about three days if left undisturbed. the adult finds a host, it feeds for seven to 10
“Ticks secrete a cement of sorts that helps days if undisturbed. During this time, females
them stay attached to the host for the entire produce a lot of pheromones to attract a male
feeding period. When seed ticks are done tick and eventually mate. Once the mated
feeding, they drop off and find a dark, moist female completes its meal, it drops off the
place to hide and molt into nymphs.” host, lays eggs, and dies.”

U.S. CENTERS FOR DISEASE CONTROL AND PREVENTION
Gulf Coast Tick (Amblyomma maculatum)

Larva

Nymph

Adult Male

Adult Female
Ticks have four basic life stages; cycling from the egg to a six-legged larva or seed tick, to an eight-legged nymph and finally to an adult.

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