Rhipicephalus haemaphysaloides Supino, 1897

Ali, Abid, Almutairi, Mashal M., Robbins, Richard G., Chitimia-Dobler, Lidia & Ullah, Shafi, 2025, Updated checklist, morphological descriptions, hosts and vector potential of ticks (Acari: Argasidae, Ixodidae) in Pakistan, Zootaxa 5725 (2), pp. 151-202 : 190

Rhipicephalus haemaphysaloides Supino, 1897

Distribution

This species has been reported in Sindh, Balochistan ( McCarthy 1967; Kamran et al. 2021), Punjab ( Hussain et al. 2023; Abbas et al. 2025), KP ( Ali et al. 2019, 2021, 2022a, b, c; Khan Z et al. 2022; Alam et al. 2022; Tila et al. 2023; Shehla et al. 2023; Khan M et al. 2023), and Gilgit Baltistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir ( Karim et al. 2017).

Morphological characters

Male ( Fig. 38 , A–D): A medium-sized tick, approximately 3.23± 0.2 mm long and 1.68± 0.1 mm wide, reddish brown or dark red in colour; conscutum narrow anteriorly, posteriorly broadly rounded, lateral grooves punctate, deep, almost reaching eyes, and posteriorly enclosing first two festoons; posteromedian groove broad, long and deep, anteriorly reaching bulbous depression; paramedian grooves short, shallow and comma-shaped; cervical grooves short and deep, converging posteriorly; conscutum smooth, with medium-sized, shallow punctations that are scattered and sparse; eyes marginal and flattened; capitulum slightly longer than wide, basis capituli hexagonal, posterior margin deeply concave and arcuate, cornua pointed, lateral margins of basis capituli highly projected; palpi stout, nearly equal in size to hypostome; hypostome clavate, dental formula 3/3; legs medium-sized, same colour as body, striations absent; coxa I with two subequal spurs, internal spur subtriangular, longer than external spur, coxae II–IV external spurs distinct and slightly arcuate, internal spurs very short and broadly subtriangular; adanal plates sickle-shaped and posteriorly pointed, accessory plates very weak, adjacent to adanal plates; genital aperture subcircular, located between coxae II; spiracular plates distinctly comma-shaped, dorsal prolongation broad.

Female ( Fig. 38 , E–H): Body approximately 2.78± 0.2 mm long and 1.57± 0.1 mm wide, reddish brown to dark red in colour; scutum nearly as wide as long, with sinuous posterior margin; cervical grooves short, converging posteriorly; laterally, scutum with a few large, irregular punctations, central region impunctate; capitulum broader than long, lateral margins of basis capituli curved, posterior margin nearly straight, cornua less sharply pointed; palpi and hypostome same as in male, dental formula 3/3; genital aperture situated between coxae II, posterior lip of genital aperture narrowly U-shaped; spiracular plates comma-shaped, dorsal prolongation broad.

Figures

FIGURE 38. Rhipicephalus haemaphysaloides A: male dorsum (I: cervical field II: lateral groove); B: male venter (I: adanal plates); C: male dorsum (I: basis capituli, II: punctations); D: male venter (I: capitulum, II: spurs of coxa I); E: female dorsum (I: scutum); F: female venter (I: spurs of coxa I); G: female dorsum (I: basis capituli, II: punctations); H: female venter (I: capitulum, II: genital aperture).