Description of Ornithodoros (Pavlovskyella) tartakovskyi using scanning electron microscopy, with notes on the morphology of Pavlovskyella sensu stricto and Theriodoros subgenera.

Accumulation of DNA sequence data and its use in systematics of the family Argasidae reveals new incongruencies between genera and subgenera, since several groups defined by classical taxonomy appear to be paraphyletic, which is the case of the subgenus Pavlovskyella. In order to identify morphological characters unique to one of the monophyletic groupings within Pavlovskyella and improve its system, we describe all active stages of Ornithodoros (Pavlovskyella) tartakovskyi, a species with an incomplete original description. Larvae, nymphs, males and females from Iran were examined with scanning electron microscopy (SEM).