The tiny Deer Tick, Ixodes dammini , common in the northeastern and northern midwest United States, is the most important carrier of Lyme disease. The Lone Star Tick is a three-host tick and indicates no particular host preference when searching for a blood meal. The favored attachment sites on cattle include the perianal region, udder or cod, dewlap and loose skin about the belly and leg attachments. Adult Lone Star Ticks are usually most abundant in Arkansas in May, June and July. The female Lone Star Tick has a solitary white spot on the back.
Males are smaller than females and have several white spots scattered on the back.
A life cycle requires about a year to complete. This tick is a three-host tick that occurs in grassy brush covered areas of Arkansas. High humidity favors this species. Dogs are the preferred host of the adult, but it has been recorded on numerous wild and domestic animals as well as man. Larvae and nymphs prefer small rodents.