How do ticks bite people? - briefly
Ticks locate a host, climb onto the skin, and embed their barbed hypostome into the epidermis using their chelicerae while secreting saliva that prevents clotting. The parasite then remains attached for hours to days, drawing blood through the feeding tube.
How do ticks bite people? - in detail
Ticks attach to human skin using specialized mouthparts called chelicerae and a barbed hypostome. The chelicerae cut through the epidermis, creating a small puncture. The hypostome, covered with backward‑pointing barbs, anchors the parasite firmly, preventing dislodgement while it feeds.
After attachment, the tick inserts a salivary canal that runs parallel to the feeding tube. Saliva contains anticoagulants, immunomodulatory proteins, and enzymes that suppress host pain receptors and inflammatory responses. These compounds keep blood flowing and reduce the chance of detection.
Feeding proceeds in two phases:
- Cementation – the tick secretes a cement-like substance that hardens around the hypostome, strengthening the grip.
- Engorgement – the tick draws blood through its foregut into a distensible midgut. Blood intake can increase the tick’s mass by several hundred times over a period of 3–7 days, depending on species and life stage.
During engorgement, the tick intermittently releases saliva into the host. The saliva’s anti‑hemostatic agents (e.g., ixolaris, hirudin) inhibit clot formation, while immunosuppressive proteins (e.g., Salp15) dampen local immune activation. This continuous secretion enables uninterrupted feeding.
Removal should be performed with fine‑pointed tweezers, grasping the tick as close to the skin as possible and pulling upward with steady pressure. Cutting or crushing the mouthparts can leave the hypostome embedded, increasing the risk of infection and prolonged exposure to saliva‑borne pathogens.
Understanding each step—penetration, anchoring, cementation, salivary secretion, and engorgement—clarifies how ticks successfully obtain blood from human hosts.