Some reproductive parameters of adult stages of
Amblyomma cajennense
ticks were studied. The capacity of virgin females to reproduce by parthenogenesis
was evaluated, during an experimental infestation, in absence of males,
on a horse (
Equus cabalus
). Ticks were spread either completely free or in limited sites on the body
of the animal. The engorged virgin females showed longer feeding periods
and lighter body weights than those that had been fertilized. Some of these
unmated females produced smaller egg masses, which had no embryonary development.
On the other hand, females that had been inseminated produced larger egg
masses, with normal embryonary development that led to viable larvae. Under
the studied conditions,
A. cajennense
females did not reproduce by parthenogenesis.
