black-legged tick

noun

ˈblak-ˈlegd- 

-ˈlāgd-;

-ˈle-gəd-,

-ˈlā-

: either of two ixodid ticks:

a

: deer tick

b

: a tick (Ixodes pacificus) of the western U.S. and British Columbia that is the vector of several diseases (such as Lyme disease)

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web

The western black-legged tick, the most common species in California, often carries diseases that can be transmitted to humans through a bite — especially Lyme disease. —Grace Tooheystaff Writer, Los Angeles Times, 9 Feb. 2023

One creature known to produce an antifreeze protein is the black-legged tick. —Carl Engelking, Discover Magazine, 27 Feb. 2015

Innovative and successful, Nexgard is an oral flea and tick prevention that works against fleas and three tick species (the American dog tick, the black-legged tick, and the Lone Star tick). —Laxmi Corp, The Salt Lake Tribune, 12 July 2022

The bacterium that most commonly causes Lyme, Borrelia burgdorferi, is transmitted to humans via the bite of an infected black-legged tick, also known as a deer tick. —Maggie O'neill, SELF, 23 June 2022

The lone star tick, the black-legged tick, the American dog tick and the Gulf Coast tick can attach to humans and pets. —al, 13 June 2022

While most insect bites are harmless, a prolonged encounter with a black-legged tick (deer tick) or an American dog tick could result in Rocky Mountain spotted fever or Lyme disease. —Rachel Ng, Outside Online, 14 Aug. 2021

Ideally, the tick should be positively identified as Ixodes scapularis (or I. pacificus on the western coast of North America), the black-legged tick that transmits Lyme disease. —Dr. Keith Roach, oregonlive, 15 July 2021

The Western black-legged tick, California’s equivalent of the Eastern deer tick that also spreads Lyme disease, is not new to the brush and scrub habitat that hugs the water. —Kurtis Alexander, San Francisco Chronicle, 1 June 2021

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Word History

First Known Use

1944, in the meaning defined above

Medical Definition

black-legged tick

noun

ˈblak-ˈlegd-, -ˈlāgd-; -ˈleg-əd-, -ˈlā-gəd- 

: either of two ixodid ticks:

a

: deer tick

b

: western black-legged tick