TickSpotters identified common tick species with an accuracy of over 98 percent. This is not always easy to do, as these photos show. The image at left shows a female blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis) from Clinton, New Jersey, that has been feeding for about three days. The image at right shows a female American dog tick (Dermacentor variabilis) from Plymouth, Michigan, that has been feeding for about four to five days. Note that both ticks have a dorsal shield called a scutum and that the scutum looks different in these species. (Photos courtesy of Thomas Mather, Ph.D.)