Ixodidae 



249 



either unfed males and females or fully engorged females can be col- 

 lected in nature in the early spring. The engorged females, ready to 

 drop for egg deposition, can be secured in numbers from livestock. 



The unfed adults may be obtained by means of "flagging." A piece 

 of white canton flannel about 36" square is tied to a light six foot pole 

 to form a "flag" (Fig. 49). The flag is dragged over grass and low 

 shrubs and ticks coming in contact with the 

 cloth cling to it and are readily seen. As the 

 ticks are collected on the flag they are placed 

 in cork stoppered 4 dram homeopathic vials 

 from which they are later transferred in lots 

 of about 150 each to cardboard pill boxes for 

 temporary storage. By this means an ex- 

 perienced collector working in a fairly heavily 

 infested area can collect 800 to 1,200 ticks a 

 day. 



Engorging of Females. For engorging 

 females, a capsule secured to the host by 

 means of an adhesive plaster girdle is used. 

 Figure 50 shows in detail the construction of 

 a girdle with one feeding capsule. Two cap- 

 sules may be used in the same girdle if it is 

 desired to feed a larger number of ticks per 

 animal. 



A circular hole slightly less than 2" in 

 diameter is made toward one end of a band of 

 adhesive tape B, 3" or 4" in width and long enough to encircle the 

 animal and allow some overlapping. The capsule is stamped from 

 20 mesh brass screening so that there is formed a circular depression 

 about %" in depth and 2" in diameter surrounded by a %" rim > tne 

 finished capsule having somewhat the shape of a low crowned hat. 

 The crowned portion of the capsule A is then fitted into the hole 

 in B so that the adhesive surface of the tape is in contact with the upper 

 surface of the rim of the capsule. A slightly smaller hole is made in a 

 shorter band C and the non-adhesive surface of the band is applied to 

 the adhesive surface of B so that the holes in the two bands are con- 



Fig. 49. — Diagram of "flag" 

 used in collecting adult ticks. 



B 



B 



C C 



Fig. 50. — Section diagram of tick feeding girdle. A, brass screen capsule; B, long 

 adhesive band for girdle (fine line is adhesive surface) ; C, adhesive tape, prevents 

 actual contact of rim of capsule with animal. 



