Spring has sprung! Warmer weather leads to outdoor activity and that can mean exposure to ticks. Ticks are active YEAR-ROUND and tick reports are ramping up for spring. Even with some colder days in the forecast, those ticks will be alive and kicking.
While we are getting excited to be outdoors again, it is definitely not fun finding a tick embedded on your person. These blood-feeding parasitic arthropods have 8 legs, 2 body regions and give people the creeps! Ticks feed on the blood of birds, reptiles and mammals including humans, pets, and livestock.
We have several species of concern in Ohio that can impact the health and well-being of people, pets and livestock. They are found in a variety of wooded and grassy environments including park paths, lawns, and camping sites.
The species of concern include the American Dog Tick (Dermacentor variabilis), the Deer Tick, A.K.A. Blacklegged Tick (Ixodes scapularis), Lone Star Tick (Amblyomma americanum), Gulf Coast Tick (Amblyomma maculatum) and the non-native invasive Asian Longhorned Tick (Haemaphysalis longicornis). Click on each to learn more. A quick recap is below.
These ticks are considered significant vectors of disease in Ohio.
Here in Medina County, American Dog Tick is what I’m seeing most right now. It is a fairly common species and is the largest tick in Ohio. It is a little easier to identify due to its brown and light grey mottled scutum, or back plate.
American Dog Tick is found in grassy areas, pastures and meadow habitats including along edges of roads and paths. Areas with little tree cover are prime location to find American Dog Tick. Populations peak April through mid-July so start tick checking yourself and pets when coming out of its primary habitats. American Dog Tick is known for transmitting Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever among other ailments.
Deer ticks are active 12 months out of the year and can be found even during winter when we have those surprise warm days. This is why it is important to use tick prevention and provide pets with flea and tick treatments year-round. Deer tick is notorious for being the vector of Lyme Disease, but Lyme is not the only disease it can carry and transmit! Any tick can carry several different disease organisms. Deer Tick favors wooded habitats. They are chocolate brown and are smaller than dog tick measuring only 1/16 to 3/32 of an inch. The nymphs can be incredibly small, only the size of a poppyseed.
Lone star tick gets its name from the white/yellow dot on the female tick’s scutum (back plate). Males lack this spot. At 3/16 inch they are larger than deer ticks. Lone Star Ticks have a 2-year lifecycle in Ohio.
Lone Star Tick was once considered a Southern tick, but it is now found across Ohio. Like Deer Tick they prefer wooded habitat. They prefer shade and can be found along uncut roadsides, shrubby underbrush, near waterways and near animal dwellings. Shade is the preference regardless of where they reside. Lone Star Tick feeds on a variety of animals including deer and can be dispersed by feeding on birds. It is colloquially known as “Turkey Tick” due to its common use of wild turkey as its host.
Lone Star is not known to transmit Lyme, but can transmit other diseases. Lone Star’s current claim to fame is the correlation between Lone Star Tick bites and the development of food allergies to red meat in humans. This allergy, known as alpha-gal syndrome, occurs in some people when their immune system reacts to a carbohydrate in the tick’s saliva when feeding. You can find more information on alpha-gal here on the CDC website. As with all things medical, a doctor or allergist should be consulted for diagnosis and treatment.
Gulf Coast Tick is native to the southern coastal regions of the US but has been moved north through livestock sales and other animal movement. It can transmit Rickettsia parkeri which can cause illness in humans. It can also carry hepatozoonosis that affects dogs. It is a concern for livestock health as well. Gulf coast tick is similar in size and appearance to American Dog Tick. Both have brown and grey mottled scutum (back) but Gulf Coast Tick has a significantly larger mouthpart. Both species prefer grassland habitats with little tree cover.
Asian Longhorned Tick is a non-native invasive species to the US. They are small and brown and lack any pattern or distinct markings. They have not yet been tied to any human illness in the U.S., but they have been linked in other countries, and are indeed a health risk to livestock and animals. The alarming characteristic of this tick is that it can reproduce without mating. Through a process known as parthenogenesis, ALT can clone itself and lay clonal eggs. A single female can cause an infestation. Because of this trait, huge populations (hundreds to thousands) of ticks can explode in a field. These high populations are a hallmark indicator that you may be dealing with an ALT infestation.
**All of these ticks have been linked to further factsheets for more in-depth information.
Because of the significant risk to health these ticks pose, PREVENTION is key.
- Wear long pants and long sleeve shirts if entering tick habitats.
- Tuck pants into socks and shirts into waist bands to limit tick access to skin.
- The application of DEET insect repellents can help, at least 20-25% DEET is recommended.
- Permethrin-treated clothing is available to kill or repel ticks.
- Always do a TICK CHECK of yourself and your pets after returning from outdoor activity, especially tick-heavy habitats.
Permethrin is an insecticide that can be used to treat clothing to repel and kill insects. Permethrin-treated clothing can be purchased pre-treated from recreational outfitters and outdoor supply companies. These professionally treated clothes will last through several washes. You may also treat your own clothing with an appropriately labeled product, following all label instructions. These products SHOULD NEVER be sprayed directly onto skin. Clothing must be laid outside and sprayed while off the body. Once dried, it is safe to wear. DO NOT apply permethrin to clothing while you are wearing it. Make sure you check the package label to ensure it is a formulation for fabric use because other products may contain permethrin that are not for clothing. These products are beneficial because, unlike repellent, these insecticides will kill the tick when it encounters the treated clothing. Read all label instructions as permethrin can be extremely dangerous for pets.
Removing Ticks
So what do you do if you find a tick embedded. First, please avoid folk remedies for removing ticks. The best strategy is to use tweezers or a tick-removal tool to grasp the tick as close to the skin as possible near the mouthparts. Pull straight outward with steady even force. Try not to twist. The primary goal is to remove the tick as soon as possible. The longer it remains attached, the higher the risk of disease transmission. After removal, cleanse the site and SAVE THE TICK!
OSU now has a tick testing service in Columbus. If you save the tick and mail it to campus, the Buckeye Tick Test Service will identify your tick and test the tick for the presence of the main tick-vectored diseases such as Lyme. A full list of pathogens can be found here. Their testing panel will check for diseases for both humans and animals so you can send ticks on your pets and livestock too if needed. Remember that different tick species can carry and transmit different diseases. Knowing what tick and what pathogen it may carry can inform your conversation with a medical provider when discussing risks of exposure and deciding next steps. The test however should not replace your doctor or veterinarian. This data also helps researchers to understand what species of ticks are in Ohio, where, and when through the season.
Ticks bites are preventable. We have seen an increase in volume and species diversity in Ohio in the last 20 years. We all must be tick savvy to enjoy our summer and protect ourselves from ticks!
