| abstract | Ornithodoros (O.) indica sp.n. is described from a female specimen originally taken as a first-instar nymph feeding on a barking deer, or muntjak, Muntiacus muntjac vaginalis (Boddaert), in Himalayan foothills of the North-East Frontier Agency, India. This specimen underwent7 nymphal instars in the laboratory. A member of the subgenus Ornithodoros, it is related to the O. (O.) moubata complex (tropical Africa), O. (O.) savignyi (Audouin) (South Africa to India and Ceylon), O. (O.) procaviae Theodor and Costa (Israel), and O. (O.) eremicus Cooley and Kohls (USA, Utah). thus the presence of O. (O.) indica in the Himalayan area presents an interesting problem in factors influenceing distribution of members of this subgenus. |