Sand tampan

A rapidly feeding soft tick of arid and semi-arid regions of Africa, the Middle East and parts of Asia, commonly associated with livestock resting places.

Feeds on livestock, wildlife and people when they enter infested resting sites.

Recorded across arid parts of Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, the Middle East and into South Asia. Presence does not by itself establish local disease risk.

Species-level confirmation should use appropriate morphological keys and, where necessary, expert examination. Photographs, host and location alone may be insufficient.

Identification requires the complete combination of family, genus and species-level morphological characters.

Use authoritative comparative keys; do not rely on colour, size, host or geography as a single diagnostic feature.

Photographs alone cannot always confirm this species.

Adult males and females differ in dorsal shield coverage and feeding-related expansion; confirm stage and sex using an appropriate key.

A soft-tick life cycle with larva, multiple possible nymphal instars and adults; feeding is typically brief after the larval stage.

Seasonal activity varies geographically and should be interpreted from local surveillance.

Recorded across arid parts of Africa, the Arabian Peninsula, the Middle East and into South Asia. Presence does not by itself establish local disease risk.

Human bites are documented. Peer-reviewed evidence associates this species with Candidatus Borrelia kalaharica; pathogen detection and proven transmission are recorded separately.

Feeds on livestock, wildlife and people when they enter infested resting sites.

Human bites are documented. Peer-reviewed evidence associates this species with Candidatus Borrelia kalaharica; pathogen detection and proven transmission are recorded separately.

Human-health relevance is stated only where governed evidence supports human biting or transmission; otherwise no human-vector claim is made.

Veterinary relevance is based on documented host use, livestock exposure and separately cited transmission evidence.

Use habitat-appropriate tick avoidance, animal inspection and veterinary-led control.

Remove attached ticks promptly using evidence-based guidance and seek medical or veterinary advice when indicated.