The winter or moose tick (Dermacentor albipictus) is a large reddish-brown to grey-brown tick that's similar in appearance to other dermacentor tick species (American dog ticks, Rocky Mountain wood ticks) found in Canada and inhabits an extensive geographic area that includes every Canadian province and territory. The farthest north they've been found is southern Yukon.
Little is known about beaver ticks. These native ticks have been collected in Ontario as far north as the southern shores of Hudson's Bay, in Manitoba and, rarely, in Nova Scotia.
The Asian longhorned tick (Haemaphysalis longicornis) is not native to Canada but it has started to cause concerns in this country.
Once confined to Australia, China, Japan, Korea, New Zealand, Russia and several Pacific islands, Asian longhorned ticks were detected for the first time in the wilds of New Jersey in 2017 after occasionally turning up on imported animals at American seaports. Thanks to some entomological detective work, we now know that Asian longhorned ticks have been making their home in New Jersey since as far back as 2013. And they’re spreading fast. Between 2013 and 2023, breeding populations went from non-existent to spanning at least 19 US states.
First described in 1899, the coastal bird tick is native to BC. However, it's not terribly well studied and little is known about its life history. Early researchers describe it as being fairly common in coastal areas of the province where it mainly feeds on grouse.
What we know about this tick species is largely based on records from more than 50 years ago and scant research in recent years which show that specimens have been collected from at least 10 bird species in BC including sooty grouse and California quail.
Western blacklegged ticks (Ixodes pacificus) were first identified in 1904 and haven't been intensively studied in Canada, so a lot of the information we have is the product of research efforts that have been undertaken in the western US and occasional initiatives in this country.
Ornithodoros hermsi ticks are something of a mystery. Although first identified in 1935 and thought to be the cause of tick-borne relapsing fever in British Columbia, they have proven elusive and, as a result, very little research has been conducted on them in this country.
Although not the most ubiquitous tick species in this country, the blacklegged tick is easily the best known of all Canada's ticks thanks to its role as the primary vector of Lyme disease in Canada east of the Rocky Mountains.
Blacklegged ticks are three-host generalist feeders, meaning that over the course of their journey from egg to larvae to nymph to adult, these ticks must dine on three host vertebrates in order to acquire the blood they need to fuel their transition from one stage to the next.
Ixodes angustus ticks are probably better known in British Columbia than elsewhere in Canada due to the role this species is thought to play in the transmission of Lyme disease in Canada's westernmost province.
Groundhog ticks are widespread throughout much of southern Ontario and Quebec as well as in other southerly locations in eastern Canada where they make their homes in the dens of their hosts as far west as Manitoba. They look remarkably like blacklegged ticks in terms of size and other physical characteristics, so much so that the average person has difficulty telling them apart. One hint that you may be looking at a groundhog tick and not a blacklegged tick is that peak activity for adult groundhog ticks is in mid-summer while adult blacklegged ticks are most active in spring and fall.
Today I'm going to introduce you to a domestic tick that you've probably already encountered even if you didn't know its identity.
American dog ticks are large, reddish-to-greyish brown ticks that are fairly easy to spot. As their common name suggests, dogs are an important host for adult American dog ticks although this tick species is neither restricted to the US nor does it rely solely on dogs for the blood it needs to propel its lifecycle.