55. Western Black-legged Tick

Although there are at least 11 species of tick that have been found on Vancouver Island, Ixodes pacificus is the most common species here at Leaning Oaks.  It actually has a restricted range in BC, found along southeastern Vancouver Island, the Gulf Islands and on the mainland from the border to the Sunshine Coast.  Females are larger and reddish and males are smaller and black.  We almost never see ticks except when we find them on one of the dogs, or, more rarely, ourselves.  Since they are now known to carry Lyme's Disease we try to make sure we get them off as quickly as we can.  The photo is of a tick after it has feed on the dog.  For an interesting presentation on ticks and Lyme's Disease on Vancouver Island  see :
http://www.bccdc.ca/NR/rdonlyres/466E08DE-2722-48FC-913B-1825692A6FBA/0/CompressedBCZoonosesLymePresentationStefan.pdf
For information on removing ticks and symptoms to be aware of after a tick bit see:
http://www.agf.gov.bc.ca/cropprot/ticksbc.htm#blackleggedtick

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