If 2023 was any indication, 2024 very well may be the worst tick season ever.
Ticks are moving. They’re showing up in places never seen before. One researcher reported finding free-ranging black-legged ticks in Saskatchewan in 2023, something never before observed.
“For years and years and years, we have only ever found many American dog ticks and a few of the Rocky Mountain wood ticks, both of which we kind of expect to see here. They’re homegrown,” [Emily] Jenkins said. “In that whole time, we’ve never picked up black-legged ticks, and this was the first time in 2023, in June, that we picked up loose black-legged ticks in the environment.”
Dragging for ticks. Credit Emily Jenkins.
When looking for ticks following an outing, note that black-legged ticks can be very small, and the nymphs are nearly microscopic. They can be very difficult to detect.
While adult deer ticks prefer to feed on deer, they can also feed on rodents. A female black-legged tick, once attached to its host can feed for up to five days, unlatch and then burrow into the duff layer where they lay dormant all winter. In the spring, these ticks can lay several hundred eggs.
Back in traditional tick country, in the northeast states, there is a different problem brewing.
“From 2020 to this year [2023], I would say it’s a 100% increase in the number of ticks humans have encountered,” says Saravanan Thangamani, professor in the department of microbiology and immunology at SUNY Upstate Medical University who tracks ticks and tick-borne diseases across New York.
Why is this happening you ask? You guessed it, mild winter weather. What Saskatchewan still has going for it is long cold winters. This allows only allows one tick life cycle to occur per year. In the northeast states however, residents have been experiencing shorter, milder winters with longer and hotter summers. This has been observed in the Midwest and now up into the Northeast. The extreme cold winters are giving way to softer gentler winters, significantly increasing tick survival and helping speed up their life cycle.
Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Anaplasmosis and Alpha Gal are all on the rise, and each should be on your radar. In some northeastern states, residents are reporting ticks on every outing. As the map above indicates, ticks are expanding.
Western ticks you may need to be on the lookout for include the black-legged tick, the American dog tick and the Rocky Mountain wood tick. As far west as Washington and Oregon, there have been numerous confirmed cases of babesiosis, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, tick-borne relapsing fever, tick paralysis, and tularemia.
Across the pond, a new tick threat is emerging in the UK. In 2022, the first confirmed case of tick-borne encephalitis virus was reported in the UK. A 50-yr old man came down with symptoms consistent with a viral infection, fatigue, muscle pain and fever. The doctors were able to trace his symptoms to black-legged tick he had picked up five days earlier. Once the man began to lose coordination, an MRI scan revealed a case of encephalitis, basically swelling in his brain. This potentially deadly disease is simply called tick-borne encephalitis or TBE. It is not new, but it is spreading.
This is changing the way people interact with nature. It’s keeping people indoors, when it doesn’t have to.
We have to evolve with our environment. We have to protect ourselves and our families. We have to get used to bringing tick protection with us every time we venture outdoors. SickTick Leg Bands are a great defense to anything attempting to crawl up your pant leg. The permethrin treated bands are specifically designed with a porous surface, forcing ticks to stay in contact with the permethrin for several seconds, long enough to stop them in their tracks. Leave ticks in the forest, where you found them.
Experts agree, there are a few precautions that can help keep you and your family safe outdoors.
These include wearing long-sleeved shirts, closed-toe shoes, and long pants, exposing as little skin as possible.
When hiking or walking in wooded areas, stick to the middle of the path and avoid vegetation.
Check yourself and your family for ticks after spending time outdoors and whenever your pets come back inside.
Use effective tick-barrier clothing such as SickTick Waist, Leg and Ankle Bands to keep ticks from getting in.
Protect yourself and your family from ticks this year. Enjoy the outdoors, but leave ticks in the woods.
