Early Spring 2017

TickSmart Newsletter

Believe it or not, Spring is nearly here!

We hope our early spring newsletter finds you cozied up inside with a hot cup of something tasty. With nearly the entire Northeast buried beneath the snow of winter storm Stella, it’s hard to believe that in less than a week spring will officially arrive. More broadly, we’re seeing wildly different weather occurring across the country lately, including tornados, rain, and snow – all in one month! Find out what this means for tick activity and how you can take the steps necessary to be prepared. In this issue: Tick Forecast Top 5 Ways to Prepare for Spring Ticks TickSmart Feature – Bob Maurais of Mainely Ticks TickSmart Tools for Spring

Tick Forecast

Current Following massive Winter Storm Helena earlier this season, Florida was the only state in the country without at least some snow or ice on the ground. We bet you weren’t thinking much about ticks if you were one of the millions of people shoveling or scraping. However, it’s important to keep in mind that blacklegged ticks ARE active in the winter, but only when the temperatures are above freezing and there isn’t a layer of snow on the ground, covering them. But don’t forget – they’re simply incapacitated, NOT dead. Check out our Polar Vorticks experiment to see what we mean! The key to reactivating these ticks is several consecutive days of non-freezing temperatures and a lack of snow cover, which is what we saw for several weeks in the mid-Atlantic and southern New England states. Unseasonably warm temperatures in the winter create the perfect recipe for tick encounters – active ticks and people getting outdoors to beat cabin fever.   Blacklegged ticks aren’t the only ones to watch out for, either. Brown dog ticks are active all year (typically in warmer climates) and can pose a major problem. In addition to quickly infesting homes, they are carriers of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever and are capable of infecting dogs and (more rarely) humans. Eradicating brown dog ticks is difficult and costly, and is worth taking the extra time to check your dog after it has been at a shelter or any facility where dogs are kept in close quarters. The point is you should remain vigilant for ticks despite the cold weather. We’ve been receiving many TickSpotters reports of several day-fed blacklegged ticks found on people and pets from both east and west coasts – an indication that ticks are still active and prevention measures are not being taken. By the way, on the west coast, you’re seeing BOTH nymphs and adult western blacklegged ticks right now (Jan-Apr.), while elsewhere in the country there are only adult deer ticks. Continue performing tick checks on people and pets after time outdoors, and definitely continue treating your pet with tick preventative each month! Check out our TickNote for more information. Looking Ahead While warmer days seem far off, they will arrive before you know it. Now is the time to begin preparing for how you will protect your family and yourself against ticks as they begin to emerge when temperatures rise. Adult Lone Star ticks and adult and nymphal American dog ticks become active in April, and adult blacklegged ticks remain on the scene until May. Could you tell each of these species of tick apart? What about an adult from a nymph or larvae? Identification is important because each type carries its own risk of disease. Take the time now to make sure you know your ticks and know when they’re active . In addition to daily tick checks, consider stepping up your TickSmart™ actions by looking into treating outdoor clothing and shoes with permethrin . This is an effective way to ward off ticks and the diseases they’re carrying by simply getting dressed. Learn more here . You can also prevent tick encounters at home by making a plan for a TickSafe yard . Consider tactics like perimeter spray treatments, placing mouse-targeted devices, or simply keeping shrubs and grasses trimmed, deer fences in place, and wood piles cleared to make your yard unattractive to ticks and the wildlife that carry them. Check out our diagram of a TickSmart™ backyard . Click here for more TickSmart™ ideas to stay tick safe. If you do have a tick encounter, make sure to save the tick, snap a picture, and send it to our TickSpotters surveillance program for identification and risk assessment.

Common early spring tick species.  Photo credit: Brian Mullen, TickEncounter Resource Center

Are you prepared for Spring ticks? Here are 5 things to do to get ready:   Know your ticks – different ticks carry different diseases, have different germ transmission times, and are active at different times of the year. Be sure to follow our TickSpotter-fueled Tick Activity information to keep up with tick trends. Perform daily tick checks, especially checking "below the belt" for tiny nymph ticks. Transform your children’s play and other outdoor wear into tick repellent clothes by having them treated with safe and effective permethrin. You can do this at home as well by spraying your shoes with permethrin monthly starting in May. Treat your yard with tick-killing products and ensure safe playtime outdoors. Protect your pet using products with rapid kill or knockdown activity. Bonus Spring TickSmart tip : After spring yard clean-up or other time spent in tick habitat, run clothes through a  hot dryer for 10 minutes  to kill any loose and wandering ticks that may have hitched a ride inside. Do this before washing to ensure ticks are dead. (They don't drown in the washer!)   If you do encounter a tick, make sure you know the proper way to remove it with a pair of pointy tweezers. And once it’s removed, don’t throw it away ! Save that tick, snap a picture, and submit it to TickSpotters .

TickSmart Feature -- Bob Maurais of Mainely Ticks   Bob Maurais, co-owner of a Maine-based tick and mosquito management and education company called Mainely Ticks, has been a TickEncounter Prevention Partner since 2014. He has been in the tick business for 13 years, and his company focuses on preventative measure to protect your family (including the furry members!) from vector-borne diseases. In addition to lawn treatments and landscape modification consulting, Mainely Ticks has been working with the local community by offering public education seminars and events on a variety of tick ecology topics. Bob recently published an article on ticks and tick-borne diseases in Pest Control Technology containing a ton of excellent TickSmart knowledge and tips. You can check out his article the full article here .

TickSmart Tools   Be sure to stock up on materials and tools to help support your TickSmart™ effort! We have informative and eye-catching “I Just Found a Tick” handouts that include how to report a tick encounter to our TickSpotters program for a quick risk assessment report in (usually in 24-36hrs.). If that tick IS risky, instructions are given on how to submit it for disease testing at UMass' Laboratory of Medical Zoology. We also have magnets, shower cards, educational kits, and other products available for purchase. Protect yourself and your family during spring tick emergence! Want to do more? Check out how you can join as a TickEncounter Prevention Partner and take the next step to help protect your family and community from tickborne diseases. In what ways are you using these products to educate and empower your community to be tick safe? Let us know! Post to our Facebook or tweet at us with a picture and post with the hashtag #weareticksmart. Let’s get a trend going – online and in real life!