Ticks in United Kingdom

Ornate cow tick

Dermacentor reticulatus

Present United Kingdom

Included in the UKHSA tick species profiles for the United Kingdom.

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An ornate hard tick established in restricted parts of the UK and widely distributed in western Europe. It has major veterinary relevance because it can transmit Babesia canis to dogs.

Identification:

Ornamented scutum or conscutum.

Eyes and festoons present.

Coxa I has large paired spurs.

Adult males have enlarged coxa IV.

The ornate pattern is helpful but does not replace examination of diagnostic characters.

Photographs and visible features may be insufficient for definitive identification.

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Red sheep tick

Haemaphysalis punctata

Present United Kingdom

Included in the UKHSA tick species profiles for the United Kingdom.

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A comparatively rare UK hard tick associated with grazing habitats. Adults feed mainly on livestock, while immature stages frequently use birds and small mammals; humans can also be bitten.

Identification:

Identification should use an authoritative key and microscopic characters; colour and photographs alone are insufficient.

Photographs and visible features may be insufficient for definitive identification.

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Fox/badger tick

Ixodes canisuga

Present United Kingdom

Included in the UKHSA tick species profiles for the United Kingdom.

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A nest- and den-associated hard tick widely distributed in the UK and commonly reported from badgers, foxes and domestic dogs.

Identification:

Reliable separation from related Pholeoixodes ticks may require adult female morphology or molecular confirmation; photographs alone may be insufficient.

Photographs and visible features may be insufficient for definitive identification.

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Passerine tick

Ixodes frontalis

Present United Kingdom

Included in the UKHSA tick species profiles for the United Kingdom.

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A bird-specialist hard tick, particularly associated with passerines feeding on the ground beneath roosts. UKHSA reports records in England and Wales and occasional attachment to humans.

Identification:

The species has historically been difficult to identify and should be confirmed with an authoritative key; photographs alone may not be diagnostic.

Photographs and visible features may be insufficient for definitive identification.

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Hedgehog tick

Ixodes hexagonus

Present United Kingdom

Included in the UKHSA tick species profiles for the United Kingdom.

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A nest-associated European hard tick primarily linked with hedgehogs and other den-dwelling mammals. It commonly infests cats and dogs in the UK and can bite humans.

Identification:

Ixodes genus: eyes and festoons absent; anal groove anterior to the anus.

Adult female palps slope inward and tarsus I is stepped.

Adult male has a broad oval body and a median ventral plate almost as wide as long.

Microscopic characters may be required; photographs alone cannot always confirm the species.

Photographs and visible features may be insufficient for definitive identification.

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Castor bean tick

Also known as: Sheep tick, Deer tick

Ixodes ricinus

Present Ixodes hard_tick United Kingdom

Included in the UKHSA tick species profiles for the United Kingdom.

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Ixodes ricinus is a widespread European hard tick that feeds on many mammals, birds and reptiles, including humans. It is the tick species of greatest concern for human health in the United Kingdom and the principal UK vector of Lyme borreliosis.

Also known as: Sheep tick, Deer tick

Identification:

Larvae have six legs; nymphs and adults have eight. Adult females have a dorsal scutum covering only the anterior body, while the adult male scutum covers almost the entire dorsal surface. Microscopic characters may be required.

Hosts: Humans, Deer, Cattle, Small mammals, Birds

Habitats: Woodland, Grassland and rough pasture, Parks and wildlife-accessible gardens

Photographs and visible features may be insufficient for definitive identification.

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Vole and Shrew Tick

Ixodes trianguliceps

Present Ixodes hard_tick United Kingdom

Included in the UKHSA tick species profiles for the United Kingdom.

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A nest-dwelling hard tick principally associated with voles, shrews and other small mammals across much of Europe and western Asia.

Identification:

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

Photographs and visible features may be insufficient for definitive identification.

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Seabird tick

Ixodes uriae

Present United Kingdom

Included in the UKHSA tick species profiles for the United Kingdom.

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A seabird-associated hard tick reported by UKHSA from colonies between Shetland and Cornwall. It principally parasitises seabirds and can also bite humans.

Identification:

Host and colony context are useful but are not sufficient for species confirmation; use an authoritative morphological key.

Photographs and visible features may be insufficient for definitive identification.

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Rabbit tick

Ixodes ventalloi

Present United Kingdom

Included in the UKHSA tick species profiles for the United Kingdom.

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A rare UK hard tick principally associated with rabbits and some of their predators. UKHSA reports records from offshore islands and attachment to humans.

Identification:

Published work documents historical misidentification and phenotypic variation. Morphological and, where necessary, molecular confirmation should be used.

Photographs and visible features may be insufficient for definitive identification.

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