Common seabird tick

English name: common seabird tick

Scientific name: Ixodes uriae White
order = Acari; family = Ixodidae

• is found on many species of seabirds, such as petrels, penguins, and shags, particularly at their nesting sites;
• occurs around the coasts of Aotearoa / New Zealand and the subantarctic islands of the Southern Hemisphere, and in the North Pacific and North Atlantic regions of the Northern Hemisphere;
• is thought to be a vector that spreads a viral disease of seabirds. Once established, the virus may persist for a number of years in nesting colonies. Many nestlings may die from it.

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