Depending on where you live in the United States, tick season coincides with the start of spring, when the snow melts away. When looking at tick season predictions, the winter weather matters. For example, colder temperatures kill off tick populations, so keep an eye on the weather to gage the severity of tick season. To help, we’ve outlined some more predictions and tick prevention tips.
Tick Prediction Factors
According to a report published in U.S. News, entomologists found that a large percentage of last year’s tick population likely survived, through shelter from leaves and snow. By contrast, drier, less snowy conditions would have decreased the survival rate.
Yet, snow is not the only predictor. Rather, tick populations correlate with the white-footed mouse population. Nymphal ticks frequently latch onto these common rodents and in certain areas of the Hudson Valley. In response, experts track both species in order to more accurately predict the tick population every spring.
Beyond these factors, statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention indicate that cases of Lyme Disease have increased 30 percent over the past decade. With the highest incidence rate in seven states, the Northeast has fueled much of this growth. Along with Lyme Disease, ticks may also spread anaplasmosis, a condition with symptoms of fever, headaches, muscle aches and chills.
In general, Lyme Disease, anaplasmosis and other vector-borne illnesses have increased roughly 300 percent since 2004. Based on findings from the CDC, reports of these diseases went up from 27,388 over a decade ago to 96,075 in 2016.
Tick Prevention Tips
According to a report in Good Housekeeping, vets in Michigan and Virginia started removing these blood-sucking pests as early as mid-February. As a result, once tick season has started, families must heed a few important tick prevention tips, such as:
- Always look out for these critters on yourself and your pets. Check everyone after going for a hike, walk or spending time in the yard.
- When you go outdoors, keep yourself fully covered and spray yourself with insect repellent. Make sure you also apply a preventative product to your pet.
- If you do find a tick, remove it with a pair of tweezers.
- Avoid at-home remedies, like nail polish or petroleum jelly. By the time these are effective, you’ve already caught a tick-borne illness.
- If you spot ticks in your yard, make an appointment with us to get rid of and remove any factors attracting ticks.
If your home has a tick infestation, call Eliminate ‘Em. We’re on-call 24/7 to make an appointment or provide more information about our tick extermination services. To begin, give us a call today.
