A tick is not a spider, a spider is not a tick, but both ticks and spiders are arachnids.

Arachnids are defined as wingless, antennae-less carnivores in the Arachnida class of invertebrates.  Neither ticks or spiders are insects.  Insects are made up of three body parts.  They have a head, thorax, and abdomen.  Insects also have three sets of legs.  Spiders are made up of two body parts – a cephalothorax and abdomen.  Ticks’ bodies are not segmented.  Spiders and ticks have four sets of jointed legs.  This is probably the most commonly-known comparison between the two.

Are ticks and spiders deadly?

Ticks and spiders are some of the most dangerous invertebrates on the planet.  A bite from a tick or a spider can cause a reaction, illness, or eventual death.  The most toxic spider in the world is the funnel web spider.  A bite from this spider can cause death within a day’s time.  No one has died from this spider’s bite since 1981.  Ticks carry dangerous diseases, which can be passed to humans, pets, wild animals, and livestock.  Powassan virus is a potentially deadly tick-borne illness.  Though rare, Powassan can cause encephalitis.  Severe cases have a death rate of 10%.

Other notable arachnids.

Ticks and spiders are in good company as arachnids.  Other well-known arachnids are daddy long-legs, mites, and scorpions.  Scorpions are probably feared more than spiders for their alleged deadliness.  Did you know that of the 1,500 species of scorpions only 25 are considered toxic enough to kill humans?  Even so, the most dangerous scorpions actually can’t kill healthy adults.  They are dreadful-looking, though!

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Prevent tick-borne illness with tick control.

With growing numbers of ticks and cases tick-born diseases, we must remain vigilant in our known methods of prevention.  There are no vaccines for illnesses, such as Lyme disease and Powassan virus.  There are limited cures or treatments for those afflicted with dangerous tick-borne diseases.

We must practice personal tick protection while out of doors, away from our homes.  Use tick repellent spray, or wear tick repellent clothing.  Wear long sleeves and pants, rather than shorts, while hiking.  At home, our best prevention is hiring a trusted tick control company to treat our yard and all the areas around our homes.  Central Mass tick control companies even offer tick control in the winter, which will help lower the number of ticks that emerge in the spring.  An ounce of tick prevention is definitely worth a pound of cure!

Also read: Is Lyme disease curable?