Mating strategies and multiple paternity, assessed by microsatellites, of the dispersal-limited, ectoparasitic tree-hole tick, Ixodes arboricola

•Multiple mating is common in ticks, but multiple paternity is largely unexplored.•We examined mating and paternity in the nidicolous tick Ixodes arboricola.•Male ticks prefer mating with engorged females and exhibit mate guarding.•There is multiple paternity but, overall, no precedence of a particular male.