The females then begin to seek out a blood meal to provide necessary protein to facilitate egg development.

Copulation takes place while the female feeds, because females need a large amount of food for egg development.

The image to the right shows the various stages of egg development:

The abdomen is specialized for food digestion and egg development.

Both male and female species mate during winter, following by an egg development in spring.

The females bite almost anything to get the blood they need to support egg development.

It takes about two weeks to reach egg development from the initial skin penetration.

Also, as noted above, females are very particular about host plant choice that aids in the success of egg development.

Relative humidity also influences egg development, with the lower threshold being 20-40%.

Females lay eggs at temperatures that are suitable for egg development.