There are few things as disturbing as finding a tick clinging to your body. Of course, this gets a bit less disturbing if you spend lots of time outdoors and regularly find these pests after getting home. That said, the last thing you should do is normalize tick bites. Every time these pests bite a human or animal there is a chance that a harmful disease will be spread. Here are some things you should know about the ticks here in San Marcos and a trick to keep them away from your home and property.
Have I Been Bitten By A Tick?
Tick bites are not like other pest bites. Most pests land or crawl onto their victim, take a few seconds or minutes to feed, and then hop off. A tick takes much longer to feed and is capable of staying on its victim for over 48 hours. To stay in place while feeding, these pests bury their head beneath the skin. You are most likely to find a tick on your neck, scalp, groin, or legs. Where do ticks live and how do they get onto people and animals? These pests prefer to live in sheltered areas like bushes and tall grass. To get onto their hosts, ticks climb up tall grass and other plants and wait for animals or humans to walk by. When a potential meal gets close, a tick will reach out its front limbs and transfer over. It will then find its way beneath clothing or fur to an area of exposed skin, and start feeding.
Ticks Can Transmit Diseases
Something you should know is that different types of ticks in San Marcos spread different diseases. The three most common ticks in our area are the wood tick, the black-legged tick, and the lone star tick. The wood tick, also known as the American dog tick, spreads diseases like Rocky Mountain spotted fever and tularemia. The black-legged tick spreads Lyme disease, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis, babesiosis, Powassan virus disease, and Borrelia miyamotoi disease. Finally the lone star tick spreads Ehrlichia chaffeensis, tularemia, and STARI. The only way to avoid a tick-borne disease is to avoid being bitten by these pests.
The Lifecycle Of A Tick In San Marcos
Most species of ticks in our area have fairly long lifespans and live to be a couple of years old if they are not caught or killed by predators. All ticks start as eggs. A single female tick lays as many as 5,000 eggs after a single blood meal. These eggs take anywhere from two weeks to two months to hatch into six-legged larvae. Shortly after this, larvae develop into eight-legged nymphs. Nymphs then feed and go through multiple stages before reaching adulthood. One thing you should know is that nymphs are more likely to spread harmful diseases than adult ticks and they are much harder to detect.
Is There A Permanent Solution For Ticks On My Property?
There are many things you can do to reduce your chances of being bitten by ticks when out and about. If you are looking for a way to enjoy your San Marcos property without having to worry about tick bites, the best thing you can do is invest in professional tick abatement with Daniel Pest Control. Our team of licensed and highly-trained technicians offers detailed options to control yard pests like ticks and mosquitoes and we would be happy to help you find freedom from these blood-feeding pests.
Contact us now to get a quote for your San Marcos property and schedule it for comprehensive tick treatments.