Haemaphysalis longicornis | |
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Illustration by Des Helmore | |
Scientific classification | |
Domain: | Eukaryota |
Kingdom: | Animalia |
Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Subphylum: | Chelicerata |
Class: | Arachnida |
Order: | Ixodida |
Family: | Ixodidae |
Genus: | Haemaphysalis |
Species: | H. longicornis
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Binomial name | |
Haemaphysalis longicornis Neumann, 1901
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Haemaphysalis longicornis, the Asian longhorned tick,[1] longhorned tick,[2] bush tick,[2] Asian tick,[3] or cattle tick, is a parasitic arachnid belonging to the tick family Ixodidae. The Asian longhorned tick is a known livestock pest, especially in New Zealand, and can transmit a disease called theileriosis to cattle but not to humans. However, the tick has been associated with several other tickborne diseases in humans.
An unfed female is typically 2.0–2.6 mm long and 1.5–1.8 mm wide, and grows to 9.8 mm long and 8.2 mm wide with engorgement.[5] Distinguishing a specimen from other members of the genus Haemaphysalis requires microscopic examination of minor physical characteristics.[6]