The Common Fowl Tick and the Relapsing Fever Tick are soft ticks. To see information on hard ticks, go to the Hard Ticks information page. To control ticks in and around buildings and on pets, go to Tick Elimination information page.
Common Fowl Tick Argas radiatus Raillet
This tick, known also as the chicken tick and the “blue bug,” is a soft tick common in poultry houses in the southern and southwestern United States. It may injure or even kill chickens, and may attack humans. It can be controlled in chicken houses and bird-roosting areas by application of properly labeled insecticides such as Permethrin-10 concentrate.
Relapsing Fever Tick Ornithodorus turicata
This group of soft ticks, which transmit the causal organisms of relapsing fever, are sometimes found in buildings in the western and southern United States. Control may be obtained with same insecticide materials used for control of the fowl tick or indoor/ outdoor tick infestations.
