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The nonpolar egg wax lipids of the cattle tick,Boophilus microplus (Canestrini)

“…Tick egg waxes may satisfy these requirements but, in addition, may well serve other functions. This suggestion is strengthened by a comparison with the waxes of the coccid, L. horii (6), which are comparatively simple and contain almost exclusively simple wax esters. Thus, they would seem to fulfill the simple task of controlling the water economy of the eggs.…”

“…Desiccation of the eggs occurs at low humidity (4) and superficial waxes are significant in the water economy of arthropods (5). However, most chemical studies of surface wax constituents have been effected on insect cuticle waxes: with the exception of the wax esters of the coccid, Lecanium horii, (6) there are virtually no composition data on egg waxes as such. The cri de coeur for "quantitative chemical data.., obtained by modem analytical techniques" (7) reflects not 0nly the biological significance of the waxes but also their chemical complexity.…”