Increase in tick populations expected to have long-term impact on Ohio’s tick season

Spring marks the beginning of a heavy tick season and in Ohio, a new report indicates this season could be worse than normal.

A new report from the Ohio State University’s College of Food, Agricultural and Environmental Sciences (CFAES) said that the tick population across Ohio is expected to rise this year.

Tim McDermott, an educator with OSU Extension, noted that global climate change and tick-host range expansion are reasons for the increase.

News Center 7 previously spoke with Don Cipollini, a biology professor at Wright State University, and he said the warmer and more humid conditions were more favorable for ticks.

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McDermott said in the report that while the American dog tick was the only tick in Ohio that was of medical importance to humans, companion animals and livestock, there are now five ticks that are concerns.

Today, the American dog tick, blacklegged tick, Lone Star tick, Asian longhorned tick and Gulf Coast tick were all listed as concerns, according to OSU’s report.

McDermott said that since ticks are “extraordinarily adaptable,” every tick season going forward “has the potential to be bad.”

“You should go into each tick season thinking about how you can keep you and your family safe,” he said.

The increase of tick population means there is an increased risk in contracting tickborne illnesses such as Lyme disease, anaplasmosis, babesiosis and Rocky Mountain spotted fever.

In the past two years, the Ohio Department of Health reported a 31 percent jump in tickborne diseases. There were 138 more cases of Lyme disease in 2021 compared to 2020.

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Cipollini said ticks like to live in brushy, tall grass areas. He suggested avoiding them while outside. In addition, McDermott said one way to control ticks is through proper yard management,

“Remove brush, tall weeds, and grass in order to eliminate the habitat of rodents and other small mammals, which serve as hosts for ticks as well as serve as prime tick habitat,” McDermott told OSU.

In the case they do latch on, you have a few hours before what Cipollini calls “a critical point” — when ticks start to feed and exchange fluids. He said you can use tweezers to pull the tick straight out. You do not want to crush the tick in the process as you are essentially injecting yourself with the tick’s fluids.

News Center 7 is working to learn what this increase of tick populations could mean for pet owners. We’ll update this story as we learn more.

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