Winter ticks, a moose of a problem

Winter ticks are invading the Vermont moose population at higher rates than ever, wreaking havoc.

Our neighbors to the north are facing a difficult decision about controlling the winter tick population and their effect on the Vermont moose population. In northern Vermont, Fish and Wildlife officials say that there is one moose per square mile. This higher moose population has drastically increased the population of winter ticks.

About winter ticks – Dermacentor albipictus

Winter ticks are not vectors for serious disease, but that doesn’t mean they are not deadly. Winter ticks hatch in the fall, and begin questing for their host. In Vermont, their main host is the moose. Once they attach for their blood meal, they remain on the host through the nymph and adult stages. As adults, they mate. The females drop the ground to lay their eggs at the end of winter, and then die. The issue is, the amount of ticks that are attaching to the moose population is enormous. Less than half of new moose calves are surviving, due to blood loss, and birth rates have fallen. One adult moose was found to host 9,000 winter ticks!

The solution to the winter tick overpopulation

Vermont wildlife officials have passed a 2020, any-sex moose hunt to eliminate 33 adult moose, thereby eliminating large hosts, on which winter ticks can thrive. It is believed that by decreasing the adult moose population, the winter tick life cycle will be halted for many ticks. The hunt will take place in October 2020. Nick Fortin, Vermont Fish and Wildlife biologist, says, “Without intervention to reduce the moose population, high tick loads will continue to impact the health of moose in that region for many years.”

Central Mass tick control

Dave Macchia, tick control enthusiast — Dave Macchia, Central Mass tick control enthusiast

As always, in Central Massachusetts, choose at-home tick control for the health and happiness of your family.

How do ticks mate? How do ticks die?

If you are a Central Mass resident, you have likely had a tick encounter. Either on yourself, your children, or your pets. Those ticks obviously come to the end of their life cycle when found, but how do ticks meet their natural end? How do ticks die?

The 2-year tick life cycle is much about questing for their blood meal, either to survive and grow to adulthood, or to mate and produce a new generation of blood-suckers.

how do ticks die

Protect your family from tick-borne illnesses with professional Central Mass tick control.

How and when do ticks mate? Once a female tick reaches adulthood, her final quest for the ultimate blood meal begins. She is looking for this blood, so she can finally mate with an adult male tick. She will quest for blood sources for days. Once she becomes engorged, she seeks a mate.

tick laying eggs, courtesy of CDC.gov — Tick laying her army of blood-suckers – courtesy of CDC.gov

How many eggs can one female tick produce? Once the adult female tick has mated, she will lie in wait under cover of leaves, rocks, or in wood piles to lay her eggs. One female tick can produce 1,500, 3,000, or even up to 5,000 eggs!

How do male ticks die? After an adult male tick has found at least one mate, his life’s mission is complete. This does not mean that he dies immediately after mating, but they do die eventually after mating. It could be months before an adult male tick dies.

ticks on poppy seed muffin — Nymph ticks compared to poppy seed – courtesy of CDC.gov

When do tick eggs hatch? It may take less than two weeks, or up to two months for tick eggs to hatch into tiny larvae. Once tick eggs hatch, these new larval ticks must seek their own blood meals in order to survive and grow. Once engorged, they molt in the winter, and emerge as tiny, sesame or poppy seed-sized nymph ticks. Nymph ticks are spreaders of infectious tick-borne illnesses, such as Lyme disease.

How do female ticks die? Soon after an adult female has produced her army of offspring, she meets her natural end. Her life is all about getting to adulthood in order to mate and lay eggs.

Central Mass Lyme disease prevention begins with effective tick control.

As residents of Central MA we must remain vigilant in the fight against Lyme disease and other diseases, such as the potentially fatal Powassan virus. Tick control is not a seasonal affair. There are methods of tick control, such as tick tubes, which can halt the tick life cycle with year-round protection.

Ticks CANNOT burrow and move under your skin undetected!

Social media is a blessing and a curse. I use social media to spread Central Mass tick awareness each week, and some of my time is spent debunking viral myths. Sometimes, the information that has been passed, seems like outright fearmongering.

You have probably seen this post, or similar posts circulating on Facebook over the last two years, claiming that ticks can burrow under your skin and move around undetected. I expect that this fallacy will begin making its rounds again soon, if it hasn’t already. Do ticks burrow? Yes. Do they completely move underneath the layers of your skin, crawl around, and spread illness? NO!

Where does tick misinformation come from?

Though the origins of the story are unknown to me, I can only assume that it came from reports surrounding the “seed tick” (slang for a tick in the larval stage of life) a couple of years ago. The CDC posted this photo on their social media, warning of the dangers of nymph ticks, the most likely to spread disease.

ticks can be virtually un-detectable — *Can you see five ticks on this poppy seed muffin?*

The small size of the nymph is alarming, as one tick is about the size of a poppy seed, making them difficult to detect or identify. Nymph ticks are in the second stage of their lives, having taken their first blood meal from animals, such as white-footed mice, often carriers of Lyme Disease, in their larvae stage. Nymph ticks are dangerous – VERY dangerous, often diseased, and ready to make your family or family pet their next blood meal, at which time they can transmit diseases.

Watch this tick burrow into human skin, aided by a “mouth full of hooks!”

Leominster tick protection is essential to your family’s health!

protect your family from ticks — Leominster tick protection is important for your whole family.

With the dangers of an increased tick population in Central Mass, tick control is not an option, but a necessity. I urge you to be proactive in the fight against the spread of tick-borne illnesses, such as Lyme Disease, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, Tularemia, and even tick paralysis in dogs. Illnesses contracted from ticks are dangerous in a few ways. Some have terrifying symptoms, such as temporary blindness. Lyme Disease can be misdiagnosed for other diseases, like dementia, and produce lifelong ailments. Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever is difficult to diagnose, and if not treated properly and early, it can be deadly.

ticks cause Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever — *Rash produced by Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever*

If you do find a tick on yourself or a family member, follow the CDC’s recommended tick removal instructions.

Keep your family and guests safe from ticks and the harmful diseases they carry by calling a professional tick control company!

Fall Is The Best Time To Eliminate Ticks And Mosquitoes in MA

Summer is officially over, kids are back in school, winter is coming, so it’s time to think about Thanksgiving and forget about ticks and mosquitoes, right? Not exactly. Mosquito and tick protection is a year-round concern!

Ticks and mosquitoes are doing their own planning. In short, they’re planning to be in your yard next spring in even larger numbers. Now is the best time to eliminate ticks and mosquitoes. Here’s why.

If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you know by now that October and November are breeding season for ticks. Mosquitoes breed on average every 4 weeks during their 2-3 month life cycle. Cold weather will kill off a few species but most mosquitoes will simply go dormant in cold weather. Eggs laid this fall won’t hatch until next spring when the weather warms.

Blacklegged ticks are most responsible for Lyme Disease and are commonly called Deer Ticks for a reason. Now is the time of year female ticks hitch a ride and drink a blood meal necessary to make eggs. The white-tailed deer is the best resource to provide that last blood meal. They are large enough to supply fully-grown ticks with the necessary blood meal they need to lay eggs. The eggs laid this fall will hatch next spring into larvae. The male ticks don’t need a blood meal since their life is over as adults but they hitch a ride on the deer to simply mate with the females. One deer can nourish thousands of female ticks with their last blood meal before they lay their eggs.

The females will leave most of these tick eggs in the nests of white – footed mice. These mice are prevalent around Central Mass homes and in every state where Lyme Disease is endemic. The newly hatched eggs will become larvae in the spring. The larvae ticks will need a blood meal to move onto the nymph stage later in the spring. Their first blood meal is often taken from the mouse that provided them a home during the winter.

As for female mosquitoes, they will deposit their eggs in damp soil, tree knotholes and anywhere that spring rains will allow the eggs to hatch when the weather turns warm. Like ticks, cold will not kill mosquito eggs. Predation is their main enemy but there are few bugs or other insects out during the winter, so few eggs will be eliminated.

By eliminating adult ticks and mosquitoes in the fall, you can reduce their numbers in your yard next spring and summer. October and November are the peak months for female ticks to get their last blood meal and lay their eggs. You can learn more about the tick life cycle at the American Lyme Disease Foundation website discussing Deer Tick Ecology.

Even if you’re not currently using a tick and mosquito perimeter spray, you can still reduce ticks in your yard next spring. A tick tube program is a highly effective method for eliminating the tick population in your yard before spring. It is specifically designed to eliminate nymph ticks now that will be adults late next summer. A one-time application a barrier spray now will reduce the adult population of both insects, thereby reducing the number of eggs they can lay in or near your yard. Now is the best time to begin protecting your family and pets from infectious bites next spring.

Westminster Tick Control – Break the 2-Year Life Cycle of Ticks

You might think the fall is the end of tick season and that you will soon be protected from tick bites with the approaching colder weather. If so, you are partially correct.

Ticks in Central Mass will begin to go dormant in weather below 45 degrees F. by hiding in the nests of white-footed mice. No amount of cold will eliminate ticks and there’s one other fact you need to know about the fall and ticks.

A tick’s life cycle is usually 2-years long. Ticks that were eggs last fall are now nymphs. They have taken two blood meals to reach this stage in their life cycle. Because of these two blood meals, often taken from several small animals or birds infected with Lyme Disease, they are now the most infectious to humans. Next spring these nymphs will leave the mouse’s nest. They will be the size of a poppy seed, making them difficult to see on our clothes and skin. After their third blood meal next spring, they will become larger during mid-summer and be adults in the fall of next year. At this last stage of their life cycle, the males will fertilize the females and the females will produce a new generation of ticks in your yard.

Westminster tick control is available now, to protect you next year.

Now is the time of year to interrupt the tick’s life cycle in your yard and reduce your exposure to nymph ticks next spring. By using a tick tube program, you can eliminate ticks around your home even before next spring. The tick tubes are placed out now will provide nesting material, treated with tick insecticide, the white-footed mouse will use to build its nest this winter. This nesting material will eliminate ticks in the nest without harming the mice. The net result is fewer ticks in your yard next spring and a head start at eliminating your family’s exposure to ticks all summer long.

When you sign up for Westminster tick control spray treatments next summer, it will eliminate 85-90% of the ticks in your yard all summer long. Treatments are scheduled at your convenience every 21 days. The spray will eliminate newly hatched ticks, nymph ticks and adult ticks in your yard. Ticks brought into your yard by any animals such as squirrels, raccoons, fox and deer will be eliminated by the spray. Using the tick tube program now and the barrier spray next spring through next fall will reduce your exposure to tick-borne infections.

The town of Westminster has posted an online document explaining the Steps You Can Take in preventing ticks in your yard. The document highlights the importance of using a licensed applicator in treating your yard to prevent ticks. A link to a Tick Management Handbook published by the Centers for Disease Control and prevention is also in this informative document.

A licensed Westminster tick control spray applicator will be fully trained and qualified in providing the tick tube and barrier spray services you need to protect you, your family and pets.

Now Is The Time To Reduce Ticks In Your Yard Next Summer

You may think that ticks die off with cold weather in the winter. A very cold winter means more ticks die off.

Many people still seem to have this notion but it’s not true. Ticks become dormant in the winter but don’t die off. Like most of nature, they are survivors and know how to do it very well.

During a tick’s 2-year life cycle, they go from an egg to a larva in their first year of life. Late in their first year, before winter, they are molting into nymphs. In order to grow from larvae to nymphs they need their first blood meal. Most will make this transition inside a white-footed mouse’s nest where they have warmth and an available blood supply to complete their transition into the nymph stage. Birds may also make a suitable blood meal for them before seeking the warmth of the mouse’s nest for winter.

The following spring they will be fully developed nymphs and begin looking for their next blood meal. It is at this time of the tick’s life that they are most likely to transmit Lyme Disease. The time of year is usually May through mid-July in MA.

Their very small size and need for a blood meal will require both male and female ticks to get that meal anywhere they can. They are able to hitch along on a mouse or human and continue to search for that blood meal until they have enough to molt again into an adult. Nymphs will quest at this time by reaching out from grass and bushes hoping to attach to a warm-blooded mammal like your dog, coyote, fox, raccoon, their friend the white-footed mouse or you.

In many areas, the white-footed mouse population is 85-90% infected with the Lyme bacteria. Taking a blood meal from an infected mouse in their nest guarantees the larvae tick or nymph tick is also infected with the bacteria. Voles, squirrels and other rodents may also serve as meals and many carry the Lyme bacteria.

Scientists have been working on how to interrupt this cycle of the larvae becoming infected in the mouse’s nest and eliminating them at that point, before they become nymphs in their second year. One effective method to do this is with tick tubes. Each fall, mice look for nesting material to build or refresh their nests. They need soft, lofty material in order to stay warm during the winter. Ticks need a place to hide and stay warm as well and the thick material and mouse’s body heat make an ideal winter home for them.

Reduce ticks in your yard now with tick control tubes.

Tick tubes are designed to provide the nesting material for the mouse. The cotton material contains an insecticide that rubs on the mouse’s fur as it moves around in the nest. This insecticide is not harmful to the mouse. However, when a nymph tries to attach to the mouse for their blood meal it is prevented by the insecticide on the mouse’s fur. The tick dies and the mouse is unharmed. The net result is you have fewer ticks to deal with in your yard next spring and summer.

Using both a perimeter spray and tick tubes are a double whammy to your yard’s tick population. Ticks that survive the winter, or are brought onto your property by other animals like raccoons, coyotes, fox, opossum, etc., are eliminated by the perimeter spray. An EPA-approved professional tick control barrier spray will be 85-90% effective against ticks. Adding tick tubes to your tick prevention program drops the total number of ticks down even before the spray is even applied the following spring. In the end you, your family and your pets have a lower risk for tick-borne infections while enjoying your yard next summer.

Category: life cycle of ticks