If you are a regular reader, you have probably figured out by now that I am a live and let live sort of person -- for the most part. I will not, however, offer myself up as a blood meal to ticks, mosquitoes, fleas, or biting flies. It's my blood and I plan to keep it (except for the odd pint here and there that goes to the American Red Cross).
All that being said, I do have a sort of grudging respect for the little blood suckers. They have a part to play in the overall scheme of things and they are quite wonderfully adapted to their role.
You will have to excuse me now. I just spied another tick, this one a nymph, strolling across my hand as I type. Time for a strip search!
Enjoy the outdoors, but be vigilant! Check for ticks often. A tick can't transmit disease unless it attaches and it takes them a little while to dig in.
5 comments:
These little suckers (no pun intended) are entirely aggravating. My children love to roll in the grass and generally become tick magnets. We check ALL the time.
I was once told to sprinkle detergent on the lawn before it rained, and this would cut back on them. It has actually seemed to work.
Grins*
OOoh, I do NOT get along with the buggies and biting/sucking/stinging ones are why.
What exactly is the point of ticks being in the world..I strongly dislike them..
While we're on the subject...I thought the ones with the white dot meant Lyme disease. Educate me, Oh Swampy One.
Grins*
chryscat,
The jury is still out on whether the Lone Star tick transmits Lyme disease. In some geographical areas it seems to be the vector while in others the deer tick (Ixodes dammini or Ixodes scapularus)is known to be the vector.
The best defense, when it comes to tick-borne diseases, is to protect yourself and do frequent visual checks of ALL body parts when you are in an area known to have ticks. We have found that treating our clothes with preparations that contain permethrin is a big help in keeping the ticks off in the first place.
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