Summarize this article in one sentence.
Unfed adult female deer ticks have a unique bright orange-red body surrounding the black scutum. Adult males are dark brown to black in color.   The name "wood tick" is used for a number of different ticks, including the deer tick, lone star tick, and American dog tick. All three ticks tend to live in wooded or recently cleared areas, and crawl up from the ground. You'll need to look to their markings to tell them apart. Brown dog ticks will have mottled brown and white markings on their scutums, which deer ticks do not have. The lone star tick has a distinctive white star-like marking on its scutum. The deer tick is about half the size of the brown dog tick, both in its pre-fed state and when engorged. Brown dog ticks rarely attach to humans. However, they are one of the few ticks that can infest a home. As the name implies, they're frequently carried by dogs, and can be found in kennels, around veterinary offices, and outdoor areas frequented by infected animals. " It may look like a head, but this is the part of the tick that attaches to the host in order to feed. It consists of two leg-like sensory structures that detect the presence of a host, a pair of knife-like structures that allow the tick to cut through the skin, and a single barbed structure (the "hypostome") that enters this opening.  The capitulum on the deer tick is much longer than in other common ticks, such as the dog tick. The capitulum is positioned to the front, and visible from above.  The female deer tick has a larger capitulum than a male deer tick. Adult male deer ticks do not feed. Deer ticks are particularly well-established along the Eastern and Upper Midwestern United States, but can be found as far south as Texas and into Missouri, Kansas, and parts of Oklahoma.  Deer ticks are most active in the spring, summer and fall. However, they may be active whenever the temperature is above freezing. Other forms of ticks, such as the dog tick, are generally most active in spring and summer months only.  The adult form of the deer tick lives in woody, brushy habitats. They prefer low-lying shrubs, not trees.  The Western Blacklegged Tick is another form of the deer tick, found along the Pacific Coastal regions. It is especially active in Northern California. This form of tick rarely attaches to humans.

Summary:
Identify the tick by its markings. Look at the length of the tick's mouthparts, or "capitulum. Consider where you found the tick.