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Stark-Billings County |
Extension Spotlites
May 22, 2008
Tick Season
Tick season has arrived! Whether we are working or having fun, we want to avoid these pests.
Ticks are found in wooded areas and open fields where it is brushy. Ticks climb to the top of grasses and on shrubs where they wait for people or animals to pass. Ticks are most active when it is humid. In shaded areas they may sit and wait on plants all day; in drier areas they may sit and wait on plants all day; in drier areas, ticks are most active early and late in the day. When humidity is low, ticks move down and hide in the soil and leaf litter.
The most prevalent tick in North Dakota is the American dog tick, whose adult body is light brown with grayish-white speckles on its back and near its head. In contrast, the adult blacklegged tick (deer tick) is about half the size of the American dog tick and looks completely black to the naked eye, but under magnification it appears orange-brown.
All tick species are capable of transmitting disease, but disease associated with the American dog tick include Rocky Mountain spotted fever and Tularemia (rabbit fever). The black legged tick transmits Lyme disease.
Keeping grass and other vegetation short around the home is a good tick-prevention strategy. In landscape shrubbery and other areas of the yard where close-cutting isn’t possible, using an insecticide can limit tick populations. In households with pets, outdoor infestations are likely to occur in those areas where pets spend a great deal of time, such as shady sites. Although ticks can "hitchhike" into your home, they cannot successfully reproduce indoors. People may have ticks in their home because their pet has become infested.
In grassy or wooded areas, a combination of protective clothing and repellant works best for people. Long-sleeved shirts and long pants with cuffs tucked inside of socks prohibit tick access to skin. Repellants containing DEET are containing permethrin should be restricted to clothing only. Pets should also be protected against ticks. Check with your veterinarian for a recommended product.
Also see Tick Season Brings Disease Potential
For more information contact:
Kurt Froelich,
Extension Agent
NDSU Extension Service
Stark-Billings County
1340 W. Villard St.
Dickinson ND 58601-4646
(701) 456-7665