How many species of ticks are there on Earth? - briefly
Scientists have described roughly 900 tick species worldwide, with some estimates approaching 1,000 as new taxa are discovered. These arachnids are classified into three families: Ixodidae, Argasidae, and Nuttalliellidae.
How many species of ticks are there on Earth? - in detail
The global tick fauna comprises roughly one thousand described species. Current taxonomic surveys list about 900 species in the hard‑tick family Ixodidae and close to 100 species in the soft‑tick family Argasidae. These figures reflect the most recent consensus among acarologists and are subject to change as new taxa are described and molecular revisions are published.
Hard ticks (Ixodidae) dominate temperate and tropical regions and include the genera Ixodes, Rhipicephalus, Dermacentor, Amblyomma, and Haemaphysalis. The genus Ixodes alone contains over 250 species, many of which are vectors of human and animal pathogens. Soft ticks (Argasidae) are primarily associated with bird and mammal nests and comprise genera such as Argas, Ornithodoros, and Carios. The genus Ornithodoros contributes more than 70 species to the total count.
Key points summarizing the species inventory:
- Family Ixodidae (hard ticks)
- Approx. 896 described species
- 5 major genera with the highest species richness
- Distribution across all continents except Antarctica
- Family Argasidae (soft ticks)
- Approx. 84 described species
- 3 principal genera
- Predominantly found in arid and semi‑arid habitats
Taxonomic revisions driven by DNA sequencing continually refine species boundaries, leading to occasional synonymization of previously separate taxa and the discovery of cryptic species. Consequently, the exact number of valid species may fluctuate, but the current estimate remains near one thousand distinct tick species worldwide.