The sheep tick Dermacentor marginatus inhabits bushy willow trees and scrubs (i.e. steppe), but secondary it is found in deciduous woodlands, too. In the warmer regions of Europe, D. marginatus and Ixodes ricinus are the most conmen species of ticks. Dermacentor species prefer warm and dry habitats (isolated hot spots like sunny slopes of alkaline grasslands). In central Europe D. marginatus ist the most common species of the genus. They are relatively tolerant to low temperatures and appear just after snow melting (this year still patches of snow around on March 25th!). Larvae and nymphs are mainly found in summer. The adults live on (cadge) the blood of bigger mammals, the larvae and nymphs on small mammals (several rodents or moles) only; they are ectoparasites. The adults are active in spring and autumn. The whole development (from hatching till death) of these ticks takes 1 or 2 years in nature; about 4-5 month in the lab www.ijon.de/zecken/system.html ,translated].

The sheep tick is an important vectors of diseases: Tularemie (Francisella tularensis), Rocky-Mountains-Fleck-Fieber (Rickettsia richettsii), Q-Fieber (Rickettsia burneti), Rinderanaplasmose, Hundebabesiose (Babesia canis); maybe refers to the US only!? [Wikipedia].

Ticks feature 2 parts: Gnathosoma (=Capitulum) the mouth or head comprises the mouth-parts: 2 Pedipalps, 2 Chelicerae and the Hypostom (=rostrum, "sucker") and the Idiosoma which comprises the Podosoma (with 4 pairs of legs, each composed of 6 segments: coxa-trochanter-femur-patella or genu-tibia-tarsus) in the front and adjacent the Opisthosoma. The first pair of legs (with the sensory Haller's organ) have long claws "grabby appendages" (s. photos in comments section).

Phylum: Arthropoda Subphylum: Chelicerata Class: Arachnida (Spinnentiere) Subclass: Acari (mites, Milben) Superorder: Parasitiformes Order: Ixodida (ticks, Zecken) Syn.: Family: Ixodidae KOCH, 1844 (hard-bodied ticks, Schildzecken) Suborder: Ixodina Family: Amblyommidae Subfamily: Rhipicephalinae Genus: Dermacentor (Buntzecken) Dermacentor marginatus SULZER, 1776 (Schafszecke)

taxonomical info: www.biolib.cz/en/taxon/id76114/ more info (German): www.ijon.de/zecken/system.html#zecke and (German): de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schafzecke and: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dermacentor

Germany, Brandenburg: Kirchmöser Dorf (lakeside, Möserscher See), 30-40m asl., 25.03.2012