We seem to offer ourselves as
Landscapers and those that spend much time outdoors’
We are the consumer, that becomes the consumed
For all of those that see us as a meal
Mosquitoes, green heads, deer and horse flies
Black flies, no-see-hems and more
They see us as an opportunity
To dive right in, from blood sucking to just biting off bits of ones’ skin
Their goal is to get a meal, before a hand, a paw or tail comes down on them.
Yet lurking out there like an Elephant in the grass, the size of a poppy seed, it is the tick, both the dog and deer tick here in NH, Lone Star and others just outside our range.
They just wait for you to come to them
Holding on at the edge of a twig on a shrub
Or on the tip of a blade of grass
You get to close and they just grab on, usually a piece of clothing
They slowly make their way to the body and from there they seem to know to head to an area where they are hard to detect.
I have come realize doing daily tick checks, that a good part of me, I can’t even see. And there are parts I rather not see
Then you need to ask another to scan all those part of us we can’t see, nor really want too, so thank you, sorry to have ask daily
Deer tick nymphs are small, a speck of dirt, the size of a coffee grind.
If they do bite and start sucking, you won’t even feel it or know it and will allowed to have their fill, they’ll just drop off to continue their life cycle.
Yet they can be a whole lot of trouble, Lyme and other tickborne diseases are spread to humans and animals by the bite of an infected tick. In New Hampshire, and across the United States, Lyme disease is the most commonly reported tickborne disease. Anaplasmosis, babesiosis and Powassan virus are other tickborne diseases that have been documented in New Hampshire, while ehrlichiosis, tularemia and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever are tickborne diseases that may be encountered in travel to other parts of the country, including other New England states.
How ticks find their hosts
Ticks find their hosts by detecting animals´ breath and body odors, or by sensing body heat, moisture, and vibrations. Some species can even recognize a shadow. In addition, ticks pick a place to wait by identifying well-used paths. Then they wait for a host, resting on the tips of grasses and shrubs. Ticks can’t fly or jump, but many tick species wait in a position known as “questing”.
While questing, ticks hold onto leaves and grass by their third and fourth pair of legs. They hold the first pair of legs outstretched, waiting to climb on to the host. When a host brushes the spot where a tick is waiting, it quickly climbs aboard. Some ticks will attach quickly and others will wander, looking for places like the ear, or other areas where the skin is thinner.
How ticks spread disease
Ticks transmit pathogens that cause disease through the process of feeding.
Depending on the tick species and its stage of life, preparing to feed can take from 10 minutes to 2 hours. When the tick finds a feeding spot, it grasps the skin and cuts into the surface.
The tick then inserts its feeding tube. Many species also secrete a cement-like substance that keeps them firmly attached during the meal. The feeding tube can have barbs which help keep the tick in place.
Ticks also can secrete small amounts of saliva with anesthetic properties so that the animal or person can’t feel that the tick has attached itself. If the tick is in a sheltered spot, it can go unnoticed.
A tick will suck the blood slowly for several days. If the host animal has a bloodborne infection, the tick will ingest the pathogens with the blood.
Small amounts of saliva from the tick may also enter the skin of the host animal during the feeding process. If the tick contains a pathogen, the organism may be transmitted to the host animal in this way.
After feeding, most ticks will drop off and prepare for the next life stage. At its next feeding, it can then transmit an acquired disease to the new host.
Yet, we love outdoors and even running thru a meadow of tall grass and hopefully some day they will find a cure, a vaccine so we can enjoy it all and not be so worried about might be waiting out there for us
