An elk mite (Lipoptena cervi) is the common name for a deer bloodsucker. Females and males feed mainly on the blood of artiodactyls of the Deer family. In rare cases, it parasitizes on foxes, wild boars, cattle, dogs, birds, etc. It has nothing to do with true ticks. People are attacked only when the population is much higher than the usual amount. The development cycle in man does not find completion. The distribution area is large, including Siberia and the countries of Scandinavia.
The size of an adult insect is about 3.5 mm. The elk mite is distinguished by its integument of a brownish color, dense, leathery, shiny. The photos presented in the article demonstrate a strong flattening of the body and head. Has 8 eyes, of which 2 are very large, complex and 3 pairs are simple. Antenna, deeply located in the frontal cavities, hardly extend beyond the head. The oral apparatus works in a piercing-sucking type. Legs with thickened hips and asymmetrical claws. The wings are developed, dense, transparent, with veins. The abdomen is elastic, the oviduct can greatly increase during pregnancy.
Moose tick is distinguished by live birth. The female lays a precock up to 4 mm. It hardens, passing into the puparium stage, falls to the ground and waits for suitable weather conditions to turn into a pupa. The birth of the next one occurs after a decent period of time, which is required for her to mature in the oviduct of the female, since they act alternately. The transition of the pupa into the winged form occurs from the end of summer until October.
An elk mite flies no matter. Loot lurks sitting on the grass, trees or shrubs. It attacks only during the day. Attracts their smell and warmth of the future owner. Having got on it, the insect throws off its wings, breaking them off at the base, buries itself in the wool and starts a meal. An elk tick can eat up to 20 times a day, sucking up a total of about 2 mg of blood.
After 20 days of nutrition, a metamorphosis occurs: the integuments darken, the head retracts, the muscles of the wings die, sexual difference appears, mating begins. Up to 1000 parasites can live on one host. Live in pairs, males adhere tightly to females. The birth of the first puparia occurs 17 days after copulation, it turns out that the winged individual needs a month to begin to produce its own kind. A female with good nutrition can give birth to up to 30 ancestors, from October to March. The elk mite in wingless form is active all winter, that is, about six months, then it dies.
With a large number of parasites, the animal is anxious, loss of blood leads to exhaustion. At the site of bites, redness, papules form. Their greatest accumulation occurs along the back and on the neck, that is, in those places where the coat is longer. Contamination with excrement enhances skin inflammation. An elk tick is a carrier of many diseases. Studies have shown that more than a quarter of winged deer bloodsuckers had spirochetes.
People react to tick bites of a moose elk differently. Some develop itchy redness, like mosquitoes, which pass within a week. Others, with reduced immunity, form blisters, peels, up to eczema, which may take months to treat.
