The Systematics of the Subfamily Ornithodorinae (Acarina: Argasidae). I. The Genera and Subgenera

The classification of the subfamily is reviewed, and 3 genera are recognized, namely Ornithodoros Koch, Otobius Banks, and Antricola Cooley and Kohls. Approximately two-thirds of the species of Ornithodoros were studied, and 7 subgenera of this genus are recognized: Ornithodoros s.str., Alveonasus Schulze, Pavlovskyella Pospelova-Shtrom ( =Theriodoros Pospelova-Shtrom, n.syn.), ORNAMENTUM (type Ornithodoros coriaceus Koch), Alectorobius Pocock, Reticulinasus Schulze, and SUBPARMATUS (type Ornithodoros viguerasi Cooley and Kohls). The genera and subgenera are described, and the interrelationships of the several species are discussed. It was found possible to assign all but 4 of the known species of Ornithodoros to subgenera.