Rocky Mountain wood tick - in my back yard no less.

The hooks on the tick's legs can cling to anything.  Tick length:  4 mm.  Male.

This tick used to be on me.  It wasn't there when I got up, but I discovered it after I took my dog out.  I was on the grass for only a few moments, but it was long enough for it to grab hold and find a patch of skin.  I have it in a plastic pill container at the moment; I think I will freeze it and put it under a microscope later.  That should be interesting.

I live in Kelowna where these ticks are apparently common, although this is the first one I have ever seen.  They do not carry Lyme disease as a rule of thumb, but are vectors for other diseases such as Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF) or rabbit fever (tularemia).  Both these diseases are potentially fatal, but can be treated when symptoms start to show.  The good news is that less than 1% of tick bites cause RMSF, and even less for tularemia.  In the US, less than 1000 people contract RMSF each year the the numbers for tularemia are around a couple of hundred.

Ticks are true parasites.  Unlike mosquitoes that feed on plant juices (sap, nectar) for energy and require blood only for egg production, ticks feed on blood throughout their lives.  Each stage of development requires a blood meal.  Where they get the blood from does not matter as long as it is from a vertebrate.  In ideal conditions, a tick can go from egg to adult in 10 weeks, but often the process takes two or even three years.  Both males and females require blood, but females require large amounts of it prior to laying eggs.

I learned a few strange things about ticks.  They are active only in mid to late spring.  They do not do well in the summer in hot temperatures and will seek refuge underground under debris.  They can last here up to two years without another meal.  Nymphs will feed on smaller animals, while mature ticks tend to search for larger ones.  Ticks actively monitor their environments for potential hosts by waiting on the edges of foilage.  They are sensitve to heat, movement, and certain chemicals.  Receptors in their front legs, which are extended, await stimulation by passing host.  These organs, called Haller's organs, will stimulate a tick to latch onto the host.  Called questing, the tick waits in an elevated position for several hours at a time and then returns to a protected, humid area.

If you want to read more about the Rocky Mountain wood tick, click here.

Thanks for reading.

Eric Svendsen     www.ericspix.com