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Photo#17407
Dermacentor variabilis -- female dog tick ? - Dermacentor andersoni - female

Dermacentor variabilis -- female dog tick ? - Dermacentor andersoni - Female
Cody, Park County, Wyoming, USA
May 13, 2005
Size: 1/8 inch
NW Wyoming 5500 ft elevation. I have this itchy feeling the ticks are out. I found two sites that suggest a female dog tick (wood tick)?

Moved
Moved from American Dog Tick.

A little late...
Well, this is maybe a little late to mention (5 years after the ID), but D. variabilis is not, so far as my research shows, found in Wyoming. It sounds like the poster just IDed this from pictures, anyway, and didn't examine the characteristics seperating D. variabilis from D. andersoni. Anyhow, probably not D. variabilis.

Looks like one to me.
Although my guide also shows the female Rocky Mountain wood tick (Dermacentor andersoni) as having a somewhat similar appearance. Their ranges are not supposed to overlap though.

If this tick was found in the Rocky Mountain area, you might want to check out what they look like. The charecter given to separate them was a little bit of a toughie and requires looking at the spiracular plates, so I'm hoping that location alone will do it.

The mottled pattern on the lighter part and the overall more reddish coloration looks more like a dog tick to me, though.

Interestingly, the male ticks of these species also have a somehwat similar appearance.

 
We are located on the eastern
We are located on the eastern edge of the rockies. However, since they extend from Canada to Mexico,that is one huge area. After checking a few other sites for Rocky Mountain Wood tick, I tend to agree with your observations. The mottled pattern and reddish coloration in my image are very close color tone to the actual tick. Thanks --

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