Ixodes ricinus

Ixodes ricinus
Ixodes ricinus complete view (starved)
Close-up view (engorged)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Subphylum:	Chelicerata
Class:	Arachnida
Order:	Ixodida
Family:	Ixodidae
Genus:	Ixodes
Species:	I. ricinus
Binomial name
Ixodes ricinus (Linnaeus, 1758)
Range of I. ricinus (marked in red) in western Eurasia and North Africa

Ixodes ricinus, the castor bean tick, is a chiefly European species of hard-bodied tick. It may reach a length of 11 mm (0.43 in) when engorged with a blood meal, and can transmit both bacterial and viral pathogens such as the causative agents of Lyme disease and tick-borne encephalitis.