252 JOURNAL OF ECONOMIC ENTOMOLOGY [Vol. 2 



umapertus var. marginatus Banks) from jack rabbits and cotton-tails, 

 upon which it is commonly fonnd in southwestern Texas, leads us to 

 infer, from characteristic color markings, that it may be a valid 

 species.- This then is a greater number of species than we find listed 

 by Mr. C. W. Howard in his recent work on the South African ticks.* 



Of the fourteen species and one variety occurring in this country 

 whose life histories we have now nearly completely worked out, three 

 species molt upon the host, the Cattle Tick and Tropical Horse Tick 

 (Dermacentor nitens) passing both molts and the Spinose Ear Tick 

 {Oniithodoros megnini) the tirst molt before dropping. 



Early in the fall of 1907 the writer, accompanied by Mr. J. D. 

 Mitchell, found after a careful examination of quail (Colinus virgini- 

 anus), at Brownsville, Texas, a number of larva? and nymphs upon 

 the dorsum of the head. These were recognized at once as belonging 

 to the genils Haemaphysalis. From the fact that H. chordeilis was 

 the only representative of the genus found in this country that had 

 been reported as attaching to birds, it was thought that these ticks 

 belonged to that species. In collections made later at D'Hannis, 

 Texas, several larval skins were found attached to the heads of quail 

 and field larks {Sturnella magna neglecta) in connection with larvae 

 and nymphs. The finding of these skins with the immature stages 

 naturally leads us to conclude that they were shed by the species of 

 tick with which they were found. The possibility of their having been 

 shed by a little known species (such as the Aponomma recently dis- 

 covered) must, however, be considered. An adult that developed from 

 an engorged nymph collected at D 'Hannis has been identified by Mr. 

 Banks as H. cJiordeilis. Further collections made in Victoria County, 

 Texas, by Mr. J. D. Mitchell and at Grand Cane, Louisiana, Quincy 

 and Hawthorne, Florida, by the writer, have shown that in the fall 

 of the year at least nearly all ground-feeding birds serve as hosts for 

 the larval and nymphal stages of this tick. In the collection of these 

 ticks the "writer has accompanied several old hunters, none of whom 

 had ever observed them upon that generally distributed game bird, the 

 quail, and questioned the veracity of a statement to that effect until 

 they were shown. That these ticks have not been collected from game 

 birds may be explained, however, by their small size and the fact that 

 a large percentage leave the host even before the blood coagulates. 

 The percentage of infestation of quail is shown to be large from the 



^Since this paper was prepared Mr. Banks has examined recent collections 

 and informs me that he now considers this tick to be a distinct species. 

 ^Twelve genera, thirty-three species and six varieties are listed. 



