‘A thorough check is the key’: Cooler weather approaching but ticks still with us
Cooler days are coming but that doesn’t mean we’re out of the figurative woods when it comes to ticks, whose bites can cause serious illnesses.
We’re not under siege but health officials and others are reminding the public to take precautions against tick bites. Blacklegged, also called deer ticks, common in this area into November, can transmit sometimes debilitating Lyme disease.
“The adults are more prevalent in the fall,” says Jennifer Rydzewski, an ecologist with the Forest Preserve District of DuPage County.
“It’s good to be aware and take precautions,” she added. “A thorough tick check is the key.”
Deer ticks tend to live in wooded areas home to deer, rodents and birds they feed on so walk in the center of trails and avoid wooded bushy areas with high grass and leaf litter.
Visit the Illinois Department of Public Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Fight the Bite” or your local health department website for details on ticks and prevention.
Deer ticks aren’t the only concern.
In a study released this week, scientists at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign mapped the distribution of three potentially harmful tick species across the state.
Each can be infected with one or more microorganisms that can cause disease and all three are likely present in every Illinois county, researchers found.
According to the study, the lone star tick is most prevalent in southern Illinois; the deer tick more common in northern and central Illinois; and, the dog tick is prevalent in the central and southern parts of the state.
“I am getting a lot more questions and even from the staff,” Rydzewski said.
Ticks go dormant in the winter but with milder winters some can emerge after a few days in the 40s.
“It’s trending upward as far as ticks being more widespread. Not so many of them are dying off in the winter,” according to Rydzewski.
More and improved surveillance regarding ticks and tick species is being conducted by various entities, she said.
Among them is the Lake County Health Department, which conducts surveillance to help track tick-borne illnesses and identify any new tick species or viruses.
Deer ticks are the most common ticks found in Lake County and, of those tested, about a third carry the bacteria that causes Lyme disease, according to Alana Bartolai, ecological services program coordinator.
Last year, a deer tick from Lake County was the first in the state to test positive for a bacteria than can cause human ehrlichiosis, a rare and severe disease. It’s primarily seen in southern Illinois and spread through the bites of infected Lone Star ticks, according to the Illinois Department of Public Health.
This week, the agency reported an Illinois resident became seriously ill with the Powassan virus, a tick-borne illness that had not previously been detected here.
Whether the person was exposed through a tick bite in Illinois or a different state is under investigation. The deer tick most frequently is associated with Powassan, according to IDPH.
The finding is a reminder to protect oneself against any and all illnesses — and there are several — associated with ticks, according to IDPH.