Tick Safety
May is National Lyme Disease Awareness Month. With warmer days ahead, we are all getting eager to get outside to enjoy the weather, but so are our insect friends in the forest. It has been a while since we have seen insects, and we will be quickly reminded that they live here too. Spring brings many insects out in the world including mosquitoes, black flies, deer flies, and mostly importantly, TICKS!
Unlike the mosquito, ticks are sneaky, and, in many cases, you do not even know they are biting you. It is important to do a tick check each and every time you come out of the woods or even inside from your yard.
- Ticks are most active in the spring and early summer months but can be present as long as it is warm outside.
- They prefer warm, grassy fields but are present in any environment.
- They can be dangerous in all stages of their lives from a small nymph to a large adult.
- There are different types of ticks such as the wood tick, deer tick, and the lone star tick (found in southern states).
The deer tick The wood tick The lone star tick
What makes these insects so dangerous?
- They all have the potential to carry Lyme disease, an illness that can make you very sick and weak. Here are several indicators that you may have it:
- A bullseye red rash will form where the tick bit you.
- You are experiencing flu-like symptoms and weakness.
- If you have these symptoms, contact a health professional to begin possible antibiotic treatment and do not wait it out.
- Most people do recover completely from Lyme’s disease or never get it at all after a tick bite.
How to properly remove an embedded tick:
- When removing a tick, you want to make sure the entire specimen is removed from your skin to minimize infection.
- To remove a tick, find a pair of tweezers and pinch the head of the tick as close to your skin as you can get and pull up. After removal, make sure the head of the tick is still attached to the specimen and sanitize the area of contact.
- If the tick was attached for a long period of time, it can be helpful to circle the area with a sharpie and to keep an eye on it for signs of infection.
To help avoid ticks, be sure to tuck your clothes in when in the woods and use a bug spray or treat your clothes with permethrin.
Enjoy the outdoors this summer, but remember to always do a tick check!
-Nate Loeffler, Forester
