Hematophagy
Videos
Hematophagy is the practice by certain animals of feeding on blood. Since blood is a fluid tissue rich in nutritious proteins and lipids that can be taken without great effort, hematophagy is a prefer
An Anopheles stephensi mosquito obtaining a blood meal from a human host through its pointed proboscis. Note the droplet of blood being expelled from the engorged abdomen. This mosquito is a malarial vector with a distribution that ranges from Egypt to China.
A bedbug
Two butterflies of the genus Erebia sucking fresh blood from a sock
Starling Feeding Offspring
Tick
Videos
Ticks are parasitic arachnids of the order Ixodida. They are part of the mite superorder Parasitiformes. Adult ticks are approximately 3 to 5 mm in length depending on age, sex, and species, but can b
Fossilized tick in Dominican amber
A hard-bodied tick of the family Ixodidae, the lone star tick
A soft-bodied tick of the family Argasidae, beside eggs it has just laid