Tick species identification
Rocky Mountain wood tick
What to look for
Brown with ornate pale markings; adults resemble American dog ticks, making geography and close dorsal photos important.
Known disease associations
- — Rocky Mountain spotted fever
- — Colorado tick fever
- — Tularemia
Finding this species does not mean the tick carried a pathogen or that transmission occurred.
Photos need context
Feeding, life stage, image angle, and damage can change how a tick looks. A useful identification weighs several visible traits together and states uncertainty when the photo does not show enough detail.
Reference: CDC tick information.