Ah, the sure signs of summer have arrived. No, not the warm

weather, school being out or Memorial Day. The sure signs of

summer in Georgia are the insects people bring into the Extension

Service.

Each week during the year, I see a lot of different creepy crawlies

come through the Extension Service door. But when summertime

hits the insect avalanche starts. Summertime in Georgia is a

great time in a bug's life, because they think this environment

is the perfect place to raise a family.

Of all the insects people bring into the Extension Office, ticks

bring out the greatest emotional reaction. People hate ticks.

Period. And I don't blame them. Not only are ticks creepy and

sneaky while they are trying to suck our blood but they are also

carriers of Rocky Mountain spotted fever and Lyme disease.

There are three species of ticks occurring throughout Georgia

that commonly feed on humans. They are the lone star tick (Amblyomma

americanum), American dog tick (Dermacentor variabilis) and black-legged

tick (Ixodes scapularis). While all three species can carry both

diseases, the black-legged tick is the major carrier of Lymes

disease, and the lone star tick and American dog tick are the

major carrier of Rocky Mountain spotted fever.

Many people bring ticks into our office to find out if they

are carrying one of these two diseases. Unfortunately, we can

identify the species of the tick, but we cannot tell if it is

a carrier of a disease. However, it is good to know that the

tick normally has to be attached for 12 hours before it can transmit

either of the two diseases. Normally, the best thing to do in

the case of a tick bite is to note the date of the bite and then

watch for the disease symptoms to develop.

Ticks normally find a host just by hanging out. They will typically

climb up a blade of grass or another plant and wait for a host

to walk by. Ticks are very adept in locating their hosts by detecting

the carbon dioxide that is exhaled and body warmth. And ticks

can be patient as they can survive up to a year while waiting

for a host.

Ticks survive best in high grass or brush areas that also attractive

to their hosts. The best way to avoid tick bites in these areas

is to:

- Wear long pants. Tuck the pant leg into your socks and

tuck your shirt under your belt. While this is not the most attractive

fashion statement, it does force the tick to move up toward the

head where detection is easier. You don't want the tick to get

under your clothing where detection is more difficult.

- Use a repellent. A repellent containing DEET is available

in many brands. The bottled DEET can be rubbed on the skin and

will normally last several hours. Deet in aerosols can usually

be sprayed on clothing as well as skin for added protection.

Permanone, containing permethrin, comes only as an aerosol and

is sprayed only on clothing. It is long-lasting and not only

repels but kills. The best combination is to put deet on the

skin (as directed on the label) and Permanone on clothing.

- Check yourself for ticks at least twice a day. Remember,

the longer an infected tick feeds, the greater the chance it

has of transmitting a disease to you. Early removal is good prevention.

- Remove imbedded ticks with forceps or cloth or

paper wrapped around the tick as near to the point of attachment

as

possible . Use a firm, steady pull. Do not jerk or twist, because

you may break off the mouthparts and get the site infected. Do

not use unprotected fingers. Apply a disinfectant to the site.

To help reduce tick populations around your house, you can treat

your dog with an approved pesticide for ticks, keep the grass

cut short, fence the yard to keep out other dogs that bring ticks

in, and use a pesticide in the yard as needed to reduce tick

populations.

If you are aware of these precautions, you should be able to

enjoy our Georgia summers outdoors without any tick problems.

Our beautiful outdoor areas are too good to be left to the bugs.

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