Feeding pattern, mating and oviposition in female Haemaphysalis longicornis Neumann (Acari: Ixodidae)

The feeding pattern, mating and oviposition were examined in the female cattle tick, Haemaphysalis longicornis . Females of the bisexual race needed mating to complete engorgement and oviposition: in the absence of a male, the females extended the time of feeding and failed to engorge and detach. One male was capable of mating with a least 6 females. Mating seemed to occur at the earliest on the 3rd-4th day after commencement of feeding when the volume of the female reached over 10 mm super(3). The feeding rate of the females of the parthenogenetic race was lower than that of the bisexual ones up to the 4th day in the feeding stage. However, both the mean engorged weight (mg) and the mean duration (days) of the feeding period were not significantly different between the two races.