Identify. Which tick is it?

Are Ticks Insects? (No — Here's What They Actually Are)

Ticks are arachnids, not insects. They share a class with spiders, scorpions, and mites, and the leg-count test gives you the answer in two seconds flat.

Asian Longhorned Tick: What to Know About America's Newest Tick

The Asian longhorned tick arrived in the U.S. in 2017 and is now in 19+ states. It reproduces without males, hits livestock hard, and the human-disease picture is still being studied.

The Blacklegged Tick (Deer Tick): Range, Biology, and Why Nymphs Matter Most

The blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis), often called the deer tick, is the primary U.S. vector of Lyme disease. Here is its range, biology, hosts, and why nymphs drive most human cases.

How Long Can a Tick Live Without a Host? Months to Over a Year

Unfed hard ticks can survive months — and adults of some species over a year — without a blood meal. Stage, species, and humidity decide whether the tick in your house dies tonight or next spring.

The Lone Star Tick: Range, Biology, Alpha-Gal, and Why It's Expanding North

The lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum) is the most-bitten U.S. tick across much of the South, the lone known trigger of alpha-gal red-meat allergy, and rapidly pushing north.

The Tick Life Cycle: Egg, Larva, Nymph, Adult, and Why Nymphs Cause Most Lyme Cases

Hard ticks pass through egg, larva, nymph, and adult stages over roughly two years. Stage controls size, season, host, and the practical risk of a bite.

Tick vs Bed Bug: How to Tell Them Apart Fast (Legs, Bites, Where You Found It)

Found a small bug and don't know what it is? Ticks attach and have 8 legs; bed bugs hide in mattresses and have 6 legs plus antennae. A side-by-side ID guide.

Tick or Spider? How to Tell at a Glance

Both are eight-legged arachnids, but ticks have a single fused body and attach to skin while spiders have a clear two-part body, longer legs, and spin silk. A side-by-side ID guide.

What Does a Tick Look Like? A Visual Guide to Ticks, Life Stages, and Look-Alikes

Ticks are small, flat arachnids with no wings or antennae. See life stages, engorged ticks, five common U.S. species, and look-alikes.

Where Do Ticks Live? Habitats, Regions, and the Yard Hotspots That Matter

Ticks aren't everywhere equally. Habitat — leaf litter, brushy edges, shaded yard cover — and U.S. region determine when and where bite risk is real.

American dog tick

Dermacentor variabilis

Look for the larger brown tick with a white or silvery patterned shield rather than a plain dark shield.

Blacklegged tick / deer tick

Ixodes scapularis

Look for a smaller tick with a plain dark shield and a reddish-brown adult female body, not a white patterned shield.

Brown dog tick

Rhipicephalus sanguineus

Think reddish-brown dog/kennel tick: less ornate than American dog tick and more tied to indoor dog environments.

Lone star tick

Amblyomma americanum

On an adult female, the single pale dot on the back is the fastest visual clue.

Western blacklegged tick

Ixodes pacificus

Treat this as the West Coast blacklegged tick: visually similar to I. scapularis, but range and official local surveillance are the practical clue.