The Culture of the Tick Rhipicephalus Sanguineus (Latreille) (Ixodidae) in the Laboratory

Abstract

The tick, Rhipicephalus Sanguineus (Latr.), was cultured through 4 generations in the laboratory using techniques described in this paper. Larvae were fed on suckling rats and nymphs and adults on guinea pigs and rabbits. Older larvae took longer to feed and drop off than younger larvae. Adult ♀♀ engorged and dropped off only after ♂♂ had mated with them. At 25°C, the life cycle was completed in 86–123 days and at 29°C in 65–90 days. This relatively short life cycle, the ease with which the different stages could be fed on the common laboratory animals, and the absence of any form of diapause, make it an ideal species for screening acaricidal substances and for disease transmission experiments.