The female's scutum is dappled but the alloscutum is solid black.

The male conscutum and female alloscutum are fringed with prominent festoons.

[1] To the north and in Madagascar, the species is replaced by the tropical bont tick, with which it locally overlaps.

The nymph and adult stages are vectors for heartwater disease, which affects various species of domesticated ruminants.

[2][3] Some wild ruminants are susceptible to the disease and suffer from clinical heartwater, but others are highly resistant.