Tick on Hedgehog

Tick is the common name for the small arachnids in the super family Ixodoidea. Ticks are external parasites that live off the blood of mammals, birds, and occasionally reptiles and amphibians. Ticks are vectors of a number of diseases, including Lyme disease. They have complex mouthparts, which allow the tick to latch on to the host, and their body has a concertina structure (shown in thie electron micrograph) that allows the abdomen to expand when feeding.