How long can a tick crawl over the body? - briefly
A tick may wander on a person’s skin for up to two days before it secures a bite, and after attachment it can continue moving for several additional days, often up to a week.
How long can a tick crawl over the body? - in detail
Ticks move extremely slowly. Most species travel at a rate of 0.5–1 mm per minute on a host’s skin. At this pace, a tick can cover a distance of roughly 3–5 cm in an hour. Because they attach quickly after locating a feeding site, the total time spent crawling before attachment rarely exceeds a few minutes.
Several variables influence the length of the crawl:
- Species: Ornithodoros (soft ticks) are faster, reaching up to 2 mm per minute, while Ixodes (hard ticks) remain at the lower end of the range.
- Life stage: Nymphs and larvae are smaller and can navigate more easily through hair or clothing, potentially extending their search time by a minute or two.
- Host condition: Warm, moist skin emits stronger cues, prompting quicker attachment and shortening the wandering period.
- Environmental factors: Ambient temperature above 15 °C accelerates tick metabolism, increasing movement speed; colder conditions slow it down dramatically.
In typical human encounters, a tick will spend less than five minutes walking across the body before it secures a feeding site. After attachment, it remains stationary for several days to weeks, depending on the stage and species. The cumulative distance traveled during the pre‑attachment phase rarely exceeds a few centimeters.
Therefore, the practical limit for a tick’s locomotion on a person is measured in minutes and centimeters, not hours or meters.