Drosophila has been called "the model model organism" as it can be used not only as a model of human diseases and pathways but also as a model of arthropod pests and disease vectors.
In the introduction of this paper the authors state that "Although genetic tools for working with ticks are currently being developed (Pagel Van Zee et al., 2007), the available tools do not begin to approach those that are available in other arthropods such as Drosophila melanogaster."
Drolia R, Von Ohlen T, Chapes SK. Ehrlichia chaffeensis replication sites in adult Drosophila melanogaster. Int J Med Microbiol. 2013 Jan 7. doi:pii: 1438-4221(12)00094-X. PMID: 23306065.
E. chaffeensis is the causitive agent of the tick-borne disease human monocytic ehrlichiosis. You can read about this disease online at the NORD website.