Ticks appear early and often

You’re probably ready to forget that the long, nasty winter ever happened. Unfortunately, one reminder of the mountains of snow will stick with us throughout the summer: Ticks.

 

Ticks are here earlier this year. 

 

“Typically ticks — the nymphs — start coming out in early May,” says Richard Horowitz, MD, tick-borne disease specialist and author of Why Can’t I Get Better? Solving the Mystery of Lyme & Chronic Disease, tells Yahoo Health. "But patients are already coming in this year with tick bites, several weeks early.“

The reason: The packs of snow acted as a "blanket” for the blood-sucking insects, insulating and protecting them from the cold. Beneath the snow, ticks aren’t exposed to wind and other adverse weather conditions, and the temperature is much more stable throughout the day and night than at the surface, according to Bennett Jordan, PhD, entomologist and staff scientist for the National Pest Management Association.

 

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