Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Pollination and Flower Structure

Pollination and Flower Structure

Flowers are the reproductive, seed-producing structures of angiosperms. Typically, flowers consist of sepals, petals, stamens, and carpels. Sepals and petals are the vegetative flower organs. Stamens and carpels are the reproductive organs.

Convergent Evolution

Convergent Evolution

Evolution shapes the features of organisms over time, ensuring that they are suited for the environments in which they live. Sometimes, selection pressure leads to the rise of similar but unrelated adaptations in organisms with no recent common ancestors, a process known as convergent evolution.

Limits to Natural Selection

Limits to Natural Selection

Organisms that are well-adapted to their environment are more likely to survive and reproduce. However, natural selection does not lead to perfectly adapted organisms. Several factors constrain natural selection.

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Establishment and characterization of a human juvenile bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem/stromal cell line under advanced culture conditions for osteogenic differentiation.

Frontiers in bioengineering and biotechnology·2026

Same author

Beyond mammals: the evolution of chewing and other forms of oropharyngeal food processing in vertebrates.

Biological reviews of the Cambridge Philosophical Society·2026

Same author

Measuring Equine Hooves in Radiographs and Computed Tomography Images Reveals Unexpected Size Differences.

Anatomia, histologia, embryologia·2025

Same author

In situ isotropic 3D imaging of vasculature perfusion specimens using x-ray microscopic dual-energy CT.

Journal of microscopy·2024

Same author

Discovery of a novel Mediterranean <i>Haemaphysalis</i> (<i>Ornithophysalis</i>) <i>doenitzi</i> group tick species infesting <i>Falco eleonorae</i> on Antikythira Island, Greece.

Parasitology·2024

Same author

Description of a new <i>Ornithodoros</i> (<i>Pavlovskyella</i>) (Ixodida: Argasidae) tick species from Pakistan.

Parasitology·2024

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 28, 2025

A Capsule-Based Model for Immature Hard Tick Stages Infestation on Laboratory Mice

A Capsule-Based Model for Immature Hard Tick Stages Infestation on Laboratory Mice

Published on: July 9, 2020

Nuttalliellidae in Burmese amber: implications for tick evolution.

Lidia Chitimia-Dobler^1,2, Stephan Handschuh³, Jason A Dunlop⁴

¹Department of Rickettsiology and Virology, Bundeswehr Institute of Microbiology, Munich, Germany.

|April 16, 2024

Summary

Fossil ticks from Burmese amber reveal that the Nuttalliellidae family, including the genus Nuttalliella, was once widespread across Africa, Antarctica, and Australia, suggesting ancient tick origins. This challenges current understanding of tick distribution and evolution.

Keywords:

Deinocroton Legionaris Myanmar Nuttalliella Nuttalliellidae cretaceous fossil

More Related Videos

Feeding of Ticks on Animals for Transmission and Xenodiagnosis in Lyme Disease Research

Feeding of Ticks on Animals for Transmission and Xenodiagnosis in Lyme Disease Research

Published on: August 31, 2013

Visualization of Microbiota in Tick Guts by Whole-mount In Situ Hybridization

Visualization of Microbiota in Tick Guts by Whole-mount In Situ Hybridization

Published on: June 1, 2018

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 28, 2025

A Capsule-Based Model for Immature Hard Tick Stages Infestation on Laboratory Mice

A Capsule-Based Model for Immature Hard Tick Stages Infestation on Laboratory Mice

Published on: July 9, 2020

Feeding of Ticks on Animals for Transmission and Xenodiagnosis in Lyme Disease Research

Feeding of Ticks on Animals for Transmission and Xenodiagnosis in Lyme Disease Research

Published on: August 31, 2013

Visualization of Microbiota in Tick Guts by Whole-mount In Situ Hybridization

Visualization of Microbiota in Tick Guts by Whole-mount In Situ Hybridization

Published on: June 1, 2018

Area of Science:

Paleontology
Arachnology
Evolutionary Biology

Background:

Ticks are classified into three extant families: Argasidae, Ixodidae, and Nuttalliellidae, with Nuttalliellidae having one species in the Afrotropics.
Fossil evidence of Deinocrotonidae in Burmese and Iberian amber suggests a broader ancient distribution for this lineage.
The limited distribution of extant Nuttalliella namaqua raises questions about the historical geographic range and origins of ticks.

Purpose of the Study:

To describe new tick fossils from mid-Cretaceous Burmese amber.
To re-evaluate the taxonomic placement of Deinocroton within tick families.
To infer the paleobiogeography and evolutionary history of the Nuttalliellidae family.

Main Methods:

Description and analysis of eight tick fossils from Burmese amber, including new species and a new genus.
Comparative morphological analysis of fossil taxa with extant tick families.
Paleogeographic reconstruction based on fossil distribution and tectonic history.

Main Results:

Discovery of two new Deinocroton species, five new Nuttalliella species, and a new genus, Legionaris, from Burmese amber.
Reclassification of Deinocroton as part of the Nuttalliellidae family, expanding it to three genera: Deinocroton, Legionaris, and Nuttalliella.
Evidence suggests Nuttalliella had a wide distribution across Africa, Antarctica, and Australia during the Cretaceous.

Conclusions:

The Nuttalliellidae family likely originated with a much wider distribution than its current Afrotropical range.
The findings support potential undiscovered extant Nuttalliella species in Australia.
An Afrotropical origin for ticks remains a plausible hypothesis, though broader ancient distributions are now evident.