Although major works and excellent reviews have been published on the subject (e.g., refs. 1 and 2), host preference of ticks is still a controversial issue, and the conclusions drawn for the lesser known species in tropical regions are likely to evolve as more records of tick collections are published3. The knowledge of these patterns of infestation is an important parameter to consider for the control of major vectors of stock diseases, particularly in the context of mixed game/cattle ranching taking place in several regions of the world4. The recent developments of molecular biology offer new opportunities to test some hypotheses about host preference of ticks within a given environment, provided that appropriate specimens are available. In addition to making a major contribution to tick taxonomy, the unique collection gathered by Dr. P.C. Morel could contribute to this goal. We present hereafter an overview of the samples available in his collection.