taxonID	type	description	language	source
6F1B6050FFF7FFAF7713F97FFE15FEFC.taxon	materials_examined	Material examined: Sakar Mts, NE of Planinovo Vill., 41 ° 58 ' 32.5 " N 26 ° 23 ' 11.8 " E, 333 m a. s. l., 02. v. 2021, edge of oak forest, 1 ♀ (BFUS- ACR 000015), on clothing, Y. Petrova leg.; Sakar Mts, the road between Ustrem and Radovets Villages, 41 ° 58.388 ’ N 26 ° 28.983 ’ E, 216 m a. s. l., edge of mixed forest, roadside vegetation, 14. iv. 2023, 1 ♂ (BFUS- ACR 000016), on clothing, D. Gradinarov & Y. Petrova leg. Notes: According to Georgieva & Gecheva (2013), Hae. inermis is rare species, distributed in Southern Bulgaria. In previous studies it was reported from Sofia, Petrich, Rila Mts, Kardzhali region and localities along the Black Sea coast (Trifonov 1975, Georgieva & Gecheva 2013). Recently this species has been found in Sarnena Sredna Gora Mts (Arnaudov & Georgiev 2022). Typical habitats of Hae. inermis are deciduous and mixed forests (Guglielmone et al. 2014 a, Estrada-Peñа et al. 2017), which is also confirmed by our findings of this species.	en	Kolarova, Nevena, Gradinarov, Denis, Petrova, Yana (2024): Hard ticks (Acari: Ixodida) in Sakar Mountains, SE Bulgaria. ZooNotes 2024 (S 15): 20-31, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.13257667
6F1B6050FFF7FFAC7712FB3FFB10F9DB.taxon	materials_examined	Material examined: Sakar Mts, NE of Balgarska Polyana Vill., edge of mixed forest, roadside vegetation (Fig. 3), 42 ° 02 ' 23.4 " N 26 ° 12 ' 34.8 " E, 415 m. a. s. l., 12. v. 2024, 1 ♀ (BFUS-ACR 000014), net sweeping, D. Gradinarov leg. Notes: In Bulgaria I. ricinus is one of the most widespread tick species, as it prevails in mountainous and semi-mountainous areas with sufficient humidity (Georgieva & Gecheva 2013). This species is dependent on a humid microclimate and is less tolerant of excessive heat and desiccation (Estrada-Peñа et al. 2017). It seems that the arid conditions in the Sakar Mountains are the reason for this single finding in the present study.	en	Kolarova, Nevena, Gradinarov, Denis, Petrova, Yana (2024): Hard ticks (Acari: Ixodida) in Sakar Mountains, SE Bulgaria. ZooNotes 2024 (S 15): 20-31, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.13257667
6F1B6050FFF4FFAF7712F98EFEA0F800.taxon	materials_examined	Material examined: Sakar Mts, S of Ustrem Vill., the road to Radovets Vill., 42 ° 00 ' 51.0 " N 26 ° 27 ' 51.6 " E, 146 m a. s. l., hillside, xerothermic vegetation with Paliurus spina-christi Mill., grazing area (Fig. 4), 05. v. 2021, 1 ♀ (BFUS- ACR 000017), on the ground, Y. Petrova leg. Notes: Rare species in Bulgaria, being recorded mainly from the southern and southeastern regions of the country (e. g. Petrich, Haskovo, Burgas, Malko Tarnovo, Tsarevo) Georgieva & Gecheva (2013). It was also collected from the Shumen and Balchik regions (Georgieva & Gecheva 2013). Haemaphysalis parva prefers mountain steppes and lower mountain forests (Estrada-Peñа et al. 2017) and our finding is consistent with these preferences.	en	Kolarova, Nevena, Gradinarov, Denis, Petrova, Yana (2024): Hard ticks (Acari: Ixodida) in Sakar Mountains, SE Bulgaria. ZooNotes 2024 (S 15): 20-31, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.13257667
6F1B6050FFF2FFA97712FF2AFD9FFE1C.taxon	materials_examined	Material examined: Sakar Mts, SW of Izvorovo Vill., 41 ° 57 ' 11.9 " N 26 ° 07 ' 56.2 " E, 289 m a. s. l., roadside grasslands with burrows of Spermophilus citellus (Linnaeus, 1766) (Fig. 8), 08. v. 2024, 1 ♀ (BFUS- ACR 000018), on clothing, D. Gradinarov & Y. Petrova leg. Notes: Widely distributed species in Bulgaria, most common in the Southern Black Sea coast and the Upper Thracian plain regions (Georgieva & Gecheva 2013). The species exhibits high ecological plasticity and is found in a variety of habitats (Georgieva & Gecheva 2013, Estrada-Peñа et al. 2017).	en	Kolarova, Nevena, Gradinarov, Denis, Petrova, Yana (2024): Hard ticks (Acari: Ixodida) in Sakar Mountains, SE Bulgaria. ZooNotes 2024 (S 15): 20-31, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.13257667
6F1B6050FFF3FFA87712FEF0FAEDFDF1.taxon	materials_examined	Material examined: Sakar Mts, the road between Ustrem and Radovets Villages, 41 ° 58.388 ’ N 26 ° 28.983 ’ E, 216 m a. s. l., edge of mixed forest, roadside vegetation, 14. iv. 2023, 1 ♂ (BFUS- ACR 000019), on clothing, D. Gradinarov & Y. Petrova leg. Notes: Widespread species in Bulgaria, found up to 2000 m a. s. l. (Georgieva & Gecheva 2013). The species prefers open habitats (meadows and pastures, including xerophilic plant communities) (Georgieva & Gecheva 2013, Estrada-Peñа et al. 2017).	en	Kolarova, Nevena, Gradinarov, Denis, Petrova, Yana (2024): Hard ticks (Acari: Ixodida) in Sakar Mountains, SE Bulgaria. ZooNotes 2024 (S 15): 20-31, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.13257667
6F1B6050FFF3FFAB7712FAEFFCB4FE8F.taxon	materials_examined	Material examined: Sakar Mts, W of Levka Vill., approx. 41 ° 52 ' 16.09 " N 26 ° 12 ' 46.46 " E, 17. v. 2016, roadside xerophilic grasslands, 1 ♂ (BFUS- ACR 000020), D. Gradinarov & Y. Petrova leg.; Sakar Mts, NE of Balgarska Polyana Vill., 42 ° 02 ' 25.2 " N 26 ° 12 ' 32.2 " E, 431 m a. s. l., xerophilic grasslands (Fig. 3), 21. vii. 2021, 2 ♀♀ (BFUS-ACR 000021, BFUS-ACR 000022), on the ground, D. Gradinarov leg.; Sakar Mts, NE of Izvorovo Vill., 41 ° 59 ' 04.6 " N 26 ° 09 ' 52.4 " E, 490 m a. s. l., meadows near a roadside water fountain (Fig. 9), 08. v. 2024, 1 ♀ (BFUS- ACR 000023), on clothing, D. Gradinarov leg.; Sakar Mts, SW of Izvorovo Vill., 41 ° 57 ' 11.9 " N 26 ° 07 ' 56.2 " E, 289 m a. s. l., roadside grasslands with burrows of S. citellus (Fig. 8), 08. v. 2024, 1 ♀ (BFUS- ACR 000024), on clothing, D. Gradinarov & Y. Petrova leg.; Sakar Mts, SE of Kolarovo Vill., 41 ° 56 ' 17.3 " N 26 ° 05 ' 45.2 " E, 203 m a. s. l., grasslands near an artificial pond (Fig. 13), 11. v. 2024, 1 ♂ (BFUS- ACR 000025), net sweeping, D. Gradinarov leg.; Sakar Mts, SW of Pomoshtnik Village, 42 ° 02 ' 29.8 " N 26 ° 02 ' 15.9 " E, 274 m a. s. l., grasslands near wheat field, 11. v. 2024, on clothing, 3 ♂♂ (BFUS-ACR 000026, BFUS-ACR 000027, BFUS-ACR 000028), 1 ♀ (BFUS- ACR 000029), D. Gradinarov & Y. Petrova leg.; the same data, 1 ♂ (BFUS- ACR 000030), net sweeping, D. Gradinarov leg. Notes: In Bulgaria R. turanicus is known from several localities in the southeast part of the country (Mincheva et al. 1965, Georgieva & Gecheva 2013, Arnaudov & Georgiev 2022). The widespread up to 1000 m a. s. l. in Bulgaria species R. bursa (Georgieva & Gecheva 2013), has not been found during the present study. Rhipicephalus turanicus is typical for regions with hot and dry climate (e. g. deserts, semi-deserts, steppes and open woodlands) (Georgieva & Gecheva 2013, Guglielmone et al. 2014 b) and thus, its presence in the Sakar Mts is not surprising. It seems that in areas with favourable ecological conditions, R. turanicus can substitute R. bursa. Such substitution was noticed by Mincheva et al. (1965) for the flattest part of the Stara Zagora Plain, and now we observed the same phenomenon in the studied habitats of Sakar Mts.	en	Kolarova, Nevena, Gradinarov, Denis, Petrova, Yana (2024): Hard ticks (Acari: Ixodida) in Sakar Mountains, SE Bulgaria. ZooNotes 2024 (S 15): 20-31, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.13257667
6F1B6050FFF1FFA57713F8CBFE75FEFC.taxon	materials_examined	Material examined: Sakar Mts, N of Yerusalimovo Vill., 41 ° 54 ' 17.8 " N 26 ° 06 ' 04.4 " E, 167 m a. s. l., roadside verges (Fig. 14), 08. v. 2024, 1 ♂ (BFUS- ACR 000031), on the ground, D. Gradinarov leg. Notes: According to Estrada-Peñа et al. (2017) H. aegyptium is the most common tick species on tortoises in the Balkan area and the Middle East. In Bulgaria, H. aegyptium is known from the Black Sea coast and the southern regions of the country (Georgieva & Gecheva, 2013).	en	Kolarova, Nevena, Gradinarov, Denis, Petrova, Yana (2024): Hard ticks (Acari: Ixodida) in Sakar Mountains, SE Bulgaria. ZooNotes 2024 (S 15): 20-31, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.13257667
6F1B6050FFFEFFA57712FEDAFC6AFCA6.taxon	materials_examined	Material examined: Sakar Mts, NE of Balgarska Polyana Vill., 42 ° 02 ' 21.8 " N 26 ° 12 ' 32.4 " E, 410 m a. s. l., roadside xerophilic grasslands (Fig. 3), 25. v. 2019, 2 ♂♂ (BFUS-ACR 000032, BFUS-ACR 000033), on the ground, D. Gradinarov & Y. Petrova leg.; Sakar Mts, SE of Knyazhevo Vill., 42 ° 06 ' 01.0 " N 26 ° 30 ' 21.7 " E, 102 m a. s. l., dirt road, riverine and xerothermic vegetation, 07. vi. 2020, 1 ♀ (BFUS- ACR 000034), on the ground, D. Gradinarov leg.; the same locality, 24. v. 2023, 1 ♀ (BFUS- ACR 000035), on the ground, D. Gradinarov leg.; Sakar, W of Ustrem Vill., right bank of Manastirska Reka Riv., 42 ° 01 ' 25.8 " N 26 ° 27 ' 06.8 " E, 94 m a. s. l., riverine vegetation, 14. iv. 2023, on the ground, 1 ♀ (BFUS-ACR 000036), D. Gradinarov leg.	en	Kolarova, Nevena, Gradinarov, Denis, Petrova, Yana (2024): Hard ticks (Acari: Ixodida) in Sakar Mountains, SE Bulgaria. ZooNotes 2024 (S 15): 20-31, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.13257667
6F1B6050FFFEFFA57712FEDAFC6AFCA6.taxon	discussion	Notes: This species is widespread in Bulgaria up to 1000 m a. s. l., being found in greater numbers in the southern regions of the country (Georgieva & Gecheva 2013). The species exhibits high ecological plasticity in its Palaearctic range (Estrada-Peñа et al. 2017). In Bulgaria, it is found in hilly areas and in the low mountain belt, often in shrublands and in xerothermic oak forests (Georgieva & Gecheva 2013).	en	Kolarova, Nevena, Gradinarov, Denis, Petrova, Yana (2024): Hard ticks (Acari: Ixodida) in Sakar Mountains, SE Bulgaria. ZooNotes 2024 (S 15): 20-31, DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.13257667
