Observations on Questing Activity of Adult Gulf Coast Ticks, Amblyomma maculatum Koch (Acari: Ixodidae), in Mississippi, U.S.A

ORCID

Goddard: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2617-7141

MSU Affiliation

College of Agriculture and Life Sciences; Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology; College of Veterinary Medicine; Department of Basic Sciences

Creation Date

2026-10-30

Abstract

During August of 2008 and 2009, observations were made on the questing heights, behaviors, and spatial distribution of adult Gulf Coast ticks, Amblyomma maculatum, in a plot near Gautier, Jackson County, Mississippi, U.S.A. Ticks were not evenly distributed in the plot, being found mostly on torpedograss and/or wiregrass along and in a small dirt field road. Adult ticks were visually observed questing on three different plants: torpedograss, Panicum repens, wiregrass, Aristida stricta, and Johnsongrass, Sorghum halepense, all but the last of which have small-diameter stems and thin, pointed leaves. Ticks were located at or near the tips of the plants (2-tail binomial probability, p = 0.0074). Observed questing heights ranged from 20-75 cm, with an average of 36 cm. Nine of 15 ticks (60%) seen questing were oriented head upward, while 6 (40%) were head-down. Limited mark-release-recapture observations were made in the study site, using ticks collected from the field road. Of 27 ticks marked and released, 15 were recaptured in three samples spanning a 24-d period. Of these, 5 had moved closer to the dirt road where they were originally captured and 2 farther away. © 2011 Systematic & Applied Acarology Society.

Keywords

Amblyomma maculatum, Gulf Coast tick, Mississippi, questing behavior

Publication Date

10-14-2011

Publication Title

Systematic and Applied Acarology

Publisher

Systematic and Applied Acarology Society

First Page

195

Last Page

200

Rights

© 2011 Systematic & Applied Acarology Society

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Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

https://doi.org/10.11158/saa.16.3.1