Influence of natural and "artificial" mating on feeding, digestion, vitellogenesis and oviposition in ticks (Ixodoidea)
Aeschlimann, A.; Grandjean, O.
Folia Parasitologica 20(1): 67-74
1973
ISSN/ISBN: 0015-5683 PMID: 4804975 Document Number: 64251
In the present work, based on personal observations and on the literature, the authors show how feeding, mating and oviposition are interdependent in Ixodoid ticks. In Ixodid ticks, mating occurs during feeding, preceding the final phase of engorgement, and is necessary to enable the full engorgement of the female. However, some ticks of the genus Ixodes and parthenogenetic Ixodids are exceptional as they can engorge fully without previous mating. In Argasids, mating is reported to occur mostly after feeding and it does not influence it. In Argasid females such as (Ornithodoros moubata (Murr.)), which are easier to investigate, mating stimulates digestion and triggers the process of vitellogenesis. It has been observed that the endocrine cells of the central nervous system are probably also influenced by mating.