Tiny ticks creating big problems

As warmer temperatures lure us into backyards, parks and trails, experts remind nature lovers to be vigilant about tiny pests hiding in the grass and weeds.

This year could be one of the worst tick seasons in recent memory - warmer climate conditions and shorter, milder winters provide a prime breeding ground for the blood-feeding arachnids.

"Our cold winters play a major role in what can and can't survive in Wisconsin," says Dr. Chelsea Cook, assistant professor of biological sciences. "Over the past few years, we have experienced longer, warmer fall seasons and shorter, milder winters. Ticks can live two to three years, and without a longer, cold winter, more ticks have more time to bite, reproduce and survive. I thought this last winter was cold enough, but I had to remove a tick from my neighbor's dog in March."

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services estimates that there are around 16 species of ticks in the state with the most common being the American dog (wood) tick, blacklegged (deer) tick and the lone star tick. Cook says because of climate change, the lone star tick is slowly migrating from the southern U.S. northward - and bringing along the diseases they spread.

"All ticks carry a variety of diseases, unfortunately," Cook says. "Deer ticks carry Lyme disease. The lone star tick bites can induce a disease called Alpha Gal syndrome, which is when a tick bite causes an allergic reaction to red meat - a relatively new discovery - and the dog tick carries Rocky Mountain spotted fever."

The CDC has created a map that provides the locations of reported cases of tickborne diseases throughout the United States.

Cook offers several ways to protect yourself from tick bites:

• Wear protective, light colored clothing for easy spotting.

• Wear a repellant that has at least 20% DEET, picaridin or IR3535, which are all pesticides that repel or kill ticks. The EPA has a search tool to find the best products.

• Avoid tall grass and walk on trails.

• Treat clothing with 0.5% permethrin.

• Check yourself and your clothing for ticks. They love warm creases like armpits, knee pits, waists, thigh creases and genital areas.

• Shower after being outside.

• Generally, "natural" sprays do not repel ticks as well as pesticides and should only be used as a supplemental spray.

If you find a tick on or attached to your body, use tweezers to gently remove the tick. If you catch a tick bite within a 24-hour period of attachment, the likelihood of Lyme disease transmission is relatively low.

"This is because it takes the tick time to settle in, bite and start sucking blood, so exchange often hasn't happened yet," Cook says. "There is less evidence for other diseases with this guideline. But generally quick removal is a good idea."

You can find more information on tick bite prevention from the Wisconsin Department of Health Services website.

About the expert:

Dr. Chelsea Cook, assistant professor of biological sciences in the Klingler College of Arts and Sciences, researches honey bees as a way to better understand social behavior. The Cook Bee Research Lab studies fanning behavior, helping scientists understand how these important pollinators work together to keep their societies functioning and what impacts humans may have on them while managing their colonies.