Ticks: how to fight them? - briefly
Wear long sleeves and tick‑repellent‑treated clothing, apply EPA‑registered DEET or picaridin on exposed skin, and perform thorough body checks after outdoor activities, removing any attached ticks promptly with fine‑point tweezers. Keep the yard trimmed and consider acaricide applications to lower tick populations.
Ticks: how to fight them? - in detail
Ticks are ectoparasites that attach to skin, feed on blood, and transmit pathogens. Effective control requires a combination of personal protection, habitat management, and chemical or biological interventions.
Personal protection measures include:
- Wearing long sleeves, long trousers, and tightly woven fabrics when entering tick‑infested areas.
- Tucking pant legs into socks and using gaiters for additional barrier.
- Applying repellents containing DEET (20‑30 %), picaridin (20 %), or IR3535 (20 %) to exposed skin and clothing.
- Performing thorough body checks within two hours after exposure; remove any attached tick with fine‑pointed tweezers, grasping close to the mouthparts and pulling straight upward.
Habitat modification reduces tick density around homes and recreation sites:
- Mow lawns weekly and keep vegetation trimmed to 3 inches (7 cm) or lower.
- Remove leaf litter, tall grasses, and brush piles that provide humid microclimates.
- Create a 3‑foot (1‑m) barrier of wood chips or gravel between wooded areas and lawns.
- Discourage wildlife hosts (rodents, deer) by installing fencing or using deer‑exclusion devices.
Chemical control options:
- Apply acaricides (e.g., permethrin, bifenthrin, or carbaryl) to perimeters of yards, following label instructions for dosage and re‑application intervals.
- Use tick tubes containing permethrin‑treated cotton to target small‑mammal hosts; rodents collect the material for nests, exposing ticks to the insecticide.
- Spot‑treat high‑risk zones (e.g., pet pathways) with concentrated formulations to minimize environmental impact.
Biological strategies:
- Introduce entomopathogenic fungi (Metarhizium anisopliae) that infect and kill ticks in the soil.
- Deploy nematodes (Steinernema spp.) in leaf litter to parasitize tick larvae.
- Encourage natural predators such as ground beetles and certain bird species by maintaining diverse habitat structures.
Pet protection:
- Use veterinarian‑approved topical acaricides (e.g., fipronil, selamectin) or oral medications (e.g., afoxolaner) on dogs and cats.
- Regularly inspect pets for attached ticks, especially after outdoor activity, and remove them promptly.
Monitoring and evaluation:
- Conduct drag sampling or flagging surveys monthly to assess tick abundance and species composition.
- Record findings in a log to identify trends and adjust control measures accordingly.
Combining these tactics creates a multilayered defense that lowers tick encounters, reduces disease transmission risk, and promotes safer outdoor recreation.