Tick Species: Identify the Ticks That Bite People & Pets

Amblyomma americanum

Identify the Lone Star tick by the female's single white dot and long mouthparts. See its US range, life stages, seasons, and the diseases it actually carries — ehrlichiosis, STARI, Heartland and Bourbon virus, tularemia, and alpha-gal syndrome. It does not cause Lyme. Educational, not medical advice.

Dermacentor variabilis

Identify the American dog tick by its ornate silvery-gray shield markings, learn its US range east of the Rockies and its life stages, and see the diseases it carries — Rocky Mountain spotted fever and tularemia. Educational, not medical advice.

Haemaphysalis longicornis

Identify the invasive Asian longhorned tick, see its expanding US range, learn why one animal can carry thousands of them, and what CDC says about disease risk to people (no confirmed human illness in the US yet). Educational, not medical advice.

Ixodes scapularis

Identify the blacklegged (deer) tick, Ixodes scapularis, by its dark shield and dark legs, learn its eastern-US range and life stages, and see the diseases it spreads — Lyme, anaplasmosis, babesiosis, and Powassan virus. Educational, not medical advice.

Rhipicephalus sanguineus

The brown dog tick (Rhipicephalus sanguineus) is a reddish-brown, dog-associated tick that can breed indoors and transmits Rocky Mountain spotted fever in the US Southwest. Learn how to identify it, its US range and life stages, and its real risks. Educational, not medical advice.

Amblyomma maculatum

Identify the Gulf Coast tick by its ornate silvery-striped shield and long mouthparts, learn its coastal-and-expanding US range and life stages, and see the main illness it spreads to people — Rickettsia parkeri rickettsiosis, a milder spotted fever, not RMSF or Lyme. Educational, not medical advice.

Dermacentor andersoni

Identify the Rocky Mountain wood tick by its silver-gray ornate shield, see its high-elevation western US range, and learn the diseases it spreads — Rocky Mountain spotted fever, Colorado tick fever, and tularemia — plus tick paralysis. Educational, not medical advice.

Ixodes pacificus

The western blacklegged tick (Ixodes pacificus) is the Pacific Coast vector of Lyme disease and anaplasmosis. Learn to identify it by its dark legs and half-length back shield, plus its US range, life stages, and look-alikes. Educational, not medical advice.