Annals of the Transvaal Museum. 



87 



short feeding- spells alternatino- with long rests of weeks or maybe 

 months. Several molts are passed as nymphs, and when mature the 

 female alternates feeding with egg-laying. The larral stage, 

 however, never feeds, and does not move about much, but enters into 

 a quiescent state soon after hatching, from which it emerges as an 

 eight-legged nymph. This tick probably transmits human tick-fever 

 in the Northern Transvaal and Mocambique in the same way as its 

 relative 0. monbafd of the Congo. 



OENITHUDUEUS SAVIGNYI, var. PAYIMENTOSITS, 



'NEUMANN. 



O. ijavimentosus. Neumann (190l). 

 Plate III, figures /, g, h. 



This variety difters from the type in the following respects : ho^j 

 more swollen, colour of a more ochreous brown, even when fully 

 engorged; legs (///, g) shorter than in sangnyi; same number of 

 teeth on the dorsal margin of article V and tarsi (///, /), but these 

 teeth are stronger, and almost contiguous on legs I, II, and III. 



Female.^ are from 14 to 17 mm. long by 11 to 12 mm. wide. 



Males. — Similar to females: 6 to 8 mm. long by 1:.5 to 7 mm. 

 wide. 



Nymphs. — Eesemble adults; rrjstruin as in eaeeus. 



Larvae resemble those of eaeeus, only larger; length 1.66 mm., 

 width 1.3 mm. The inner apophysis of the mandible is simple, and 

 inserted lower dowm ; the outer apophysis is bidentate ; hypostome with 

 four rows of teeth. 



Eggs. — Larger than in eaeeus, darker coloured, nearly black, 

 surface shiny; 1.4 mm. long by 1.0 mm. wide. 



Hosts. — Man and other animals. 



Habitat. — German South- West Africa. It hides in the sand 

 as 0. savignyi does. 



This form was described ])y Neumann from a single female 

 collected at Bethany, in Great Namaqualand. I have received a 

 large number of specimens from German South- West Africa in all 

 stages of development, and have also been able to work out the 

 earlier stages of the life history. The life history resembles that of 

 caecus in main, but it differs from savignyi in being somewhat more 

 swollen, and in the characters of articles Y and tarsi, but in no 

 essential details. From moubata it differs in the characters of the 

 legs, and in possessing^ eyes, as in the type. From eaeeus it is 

 distinguished by its larger size, more brownish colour, presence of 

 eyes, and the characters of the legs. The early stages of the life 

 history are like those of eaeeus rather than moubata, i.e. the larva 

 hatches, then becomes quiescent, and in a short time sheds its skin, 

 and the octopod form emerges. 



It does not seem to me that there are sufficient grounds for making 

 this a separate species ; it is, however, distinct from the type, and i 

 have made it a variety, i.e. savignyi pavimentosns . 



