434 
CHICKEN-FEVER  TICK 
Arg'as  persicus  (Oken). 
The  larval  stages  of  this  Argasid  were  found  ‘  adhering  to  the 
skin  of  the  common  fowl’  at  Kingston,  by  Dr.  J.  W.  Plaxton,  in  or 
about  the  year  1896.  These  examples  were  identihed  by  Neumann, 
and  subsequently  recorded  in  the  local  press,  as  then  forming  part  of 
the  local  collection  in  the  Museum  of  the  Institute  of  Jamaica  (No. 
4,165).  A  thorough  search  for  this  tick  was  made  in  several  localities 
without  discovering  any  trace  of  it — neither  were  specimens  received 
from  any  part  of  the  country,  though  one  frequently  heard  of  a 
‘  fowl-tick,’  but  whether  it  was  of  this  kind  or  one  of  the  common 
cattle  ticks  of  the  country  is  not  clear ;  but  seeing  that  it  has  already 
been  recorded,  the  probabilities  are  that  it  will  be  found  in  many 
localities,  though  it  may  prove  to  be  somewhat  local  in  its  distribution. 
The  bites  of  this  tick  are  dangerous,  and  are  said  to  cause 
prolonged  sickness  in  man  in  Persia.  It  is  also  the  cause  of  Spiro- 
chaetosis  in  fowls,  acting  as  the  intermediary  host  of  Spirochaeta 
marchouxi,  Nuttall.  Like  the  other  members  of  the  sub-family  to 
which  it  is  related,  it  is  not  a  permanent  parasite,  though  it  remains 
on  the  host  for  a  few  days  when  in  its  larval  or  young  stage,  in  which 
it  is  generally  known  as  a  ‘  seed  tick.’  It  is  strictly  nocturnal  in  its 
habits,  and  after  casting  its  larval  skin  feeds  only  at  night,  leaving 
the  host  immediately  after  taking  a  meal  of  blood,  seeking  shelter 
in  any  hole  or  crevice  in  the  fowl-roost  into  which  it  can  wedge  itself. 
In  these  respects  therefore  it  very  closely  resembles  the  common 
bed-bug  {Cimex  lecUilariiis).  Unlike  the  cattle  ticks,  the  female  does 
not  die  after  laying  her  first  batch  of  eggs,  but  often  survives  for  long- 
periods,  taking  frequent  meals  of  blood  when  the  host  is  available, 
and  laying  eggs  at  irregular  intervals  throughout  life.  They  can  be 
reared  in  this  country  (England)  if  placed  in  a  suitable  temperature  ; 
but  great  numbers  die  off  in  the  dry  atmosphere  of  the  incubator. 
Hunter  and  Hooker^'  give  a  great  many  interesting  details 
regarding  the  life-history  and  habits  of  this  species.  Full  tables  are 
given  by  these  authors  on  the  oviposition  as  observed  at  Dallas  in 
Texas,  and  the  figures  given  show  that  the  number  of  eggs  laid  by 
Ibid.,  pp.  45-46. 
