334 
Ornithodorus moubata 
The longevity of individuals of either sex is greatly influenced by tem¬ 
perature, the length of life of a normal female, kept at 37° C. being approxi¬ 
mately one-fifth that of a similar female kept at 22° C. An unfed female has 
about half the span of life of a fed female, when both are maintained at 
37° C. The series of females kept at 22° C. survived unfed for a mean period 
of 441 days after ovipositing, whereas at 30° C. the females died off in a 
quarter of the time. * 
The male individuals are very resistant to starvation, having an average 
life of* 184 days when kept at 30° C. Unfed first stage nymphs may survive 
for a year at low temperatures, but they succumb fairly quickly, at 37° C. 
No evidence of adult ticks moulting. 
According to Nuttall and Warburton (1908) two authors have stated that 
0. moubata moults after reaching maturity: (a) the female tick may moult 
after oviposition (Donitz) and ( b ) the male individuals alone may continue 
to moult (Mollers). 
During these experiments however, although sexually mature ticks were 
kept alive for long periods, no individual, male or female, was observed to 
undergo ecdysis, once that individual had reached the adult state. 
Duration and number of the nymphal stages at 22° and 30° C. 
(a) Experimental Data. 
A portion of the progeny of each female was reared separately to the 
adult stage, to determine the duration of the various nymphal stages and to 
establish the number of these stages. The individuals, which failed either to 
feed or to moult after feeding (through not procuring sufficient food or other 
cause), were rejected at each stage. 
It is not considered necessary to present the data in detail for each batch 
of individuals reared and the records are summarised in Synopsis IV. The 
minimum, maximum and mean durations of the stages are given, together 
with the numbers of the individuals on which the observations were made. 
The larva passes into the first nymphal stage without previous engorgement, 
but not so the succeeding stages, and therefore it should be noted that after 
the first nymphal stage the periods required for ecdysis are reckoned from 
the date of the previous meal and not that of the previous moult. In the 
majority of cases, the newly emerged individuals were offered a meal as soon 
as they appeared to be capable of feeding. 
