A not-so-welcome sign of spring, the emergence of ticks, has already begun, and experts are on the lookout for two particularly nasty species.
Neither species – the black-legged tick and the lone star tick – have been verified as having established populations in Wyoming yet.
And we really don’t want them here, entomologist Mikenna Smith told Cowboy State Daily.
The black-legged tick is notorious for carrying Lyme disease.
And Smith described the lone star tick as “a very aggressive biter” that might carry nasty diseases, including pathogens that can trigger a meat allergy in humans.
“It’s a hunter, rather than an ambusher. It will kind of chase you down,” said Smith, who works with the Teton County Weed and Pest District.
Entomologists announced last month another species previously unknown in Wyoming, the American dog tick, had been found here.
If There’s Exposed Plants, There Are Ticks
Smith plans on starting her annual spring tick surveys soon.
Whenever there are sustained temperatures of about 40-50 degrees, and there’s vegetation starting to poke through the melting snow, it’s possible ticks are there, she said.
They’re waiting for warm-blooded creatures to brush past the vegetation, so they can latch on and start sucking blood.
“They’ll hang out, waiting for a dog, a person or an antelope to come by,” Smith said.
Hunter Deerman, an entomologist with the city of Laramie, also told Cowboy State Daily that he’s planning to head out for tick surveys soon.
And he’s been hearing rumors that ticks are out in southeastern Wyoming.
Last March, Deerman bagged 53 ticks within a few minutes in rural Laramie County.
He advised people to look out for ticks in places like exposed rock faces that are soaking up the sun’s heat.
“The ticks think it’s summertime, and they’ll start crawling out,” he said.
New Ticks, New Disease Risks
Deerman sent the 53 ticks he scooped up last spring to Smith’s labs, to have them tested for disease.
One of them tested positive for Colorado tick fever, he said.
In otherwise healthy people, it usually causes “flu-like symptoms,” he said. It can cause serious illness in small children, the elderly or people with compromised immune systems.
Lyme disease is perhaps the most dreaded tick-borne illness. It can cause serious, chronic health problems.
Thankfully, no black-legged ticks known to carry Lyme disease have shown up in Wyoming yet.
Smith said they might not be able to gain a foothold here, because Wyoming’s climate could be too dry for them.
However, lone star ticks are better acclimated to dry climates, and the neighboring state of Nebraska is known to have an established population, she said.
Lone star ticks have a distinctive white spot in the middle of their backs, which is “kind of shiny,” Smith said.
Calling All Tick Wranglers
Deerman agreed that the possibility of lone star ticks showing up in Wyoming “is a concern.”
“We haven’t found any yet, which is good. But that’s why tick surveillance is so important,” he said.
There are still large gaps in Wyoming’s tick surveys, Smith and Deerman said. And they’d like the public’s help.
As they did last year, they’re asking folks who want to become “tick wranglers” to pitch in.
Dragging a white cloth across brush while hiking is a good way to collect ticks.
Once captured, ticks can be placed into plastic bags for mailing. A few blades of grass or something else capable of holding some moisture should be put in as well, Smith said.
“They can actually live through the process of being mailed,” she said.
The more ticks that come into the lab, the better picture researchers will have of Wyoming’s tick population, and the sooner they’ll be able to detect any new species, Smith added.
Bags of ticks can be mailed to Teton County Weed & Pest District, 7575 South U.S. Hwy 89, Jackson, WY 83001.
Mark Heinz can be reached at mark@cowboystatedaily.com.
