The wood tick, also known as the Rocky Mountain wood tick, is a hard tick with three life stages, larva, nymph and adult, found mainly in the northwestern United States and southwestern Canada along the Rocky Mountains. It is a vector for Colorado tick fever and can also transmit Rocky Mountain spotted fever and tularemia. The tick does not feed on humans during its larval and nymphal stages but does so as an adult, and adult females can feed on a host for five to fifteen days. Prevention centers on limiting exposure in wooded and wet areas and checking the body thoroughly for ticks after time outdoors.
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