Hard Tick

Found in wooded areas, tall grasses, leaf litter, and shrubs where they wait for hosts.

Hematophagous (blood-feeder), consuming blood from mammals, birds, and reptiles during different life stages.

Uses a behavior called 'questing' where they hold onto vegetation with back legs and stretch front legs to grab passing hosts. They undergo four life stages: egg, larva, nymph, and adult.

Significant risk to humans and animals as vectors for diseases like Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and Anaplasmosis; no known benefits to humans or ecosystems.