Tick


A small wingless bloodsucking insect that, along with the mite, belongs to the order Acarina. Ticks may be found in tall grass, where they may attach to a passing animal or person. Pulling a tick forcefully out from under the skin may leave the head behind. Ticks can transmit diseases such as Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, tularemia, equine encephalitis, ehrlichiosis, babesiosis, and (in animals only) anaplasmosis.
Picture of a tick

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  • Tick bite

    A bite from a bloodsucking, parasitic insect that punctures the skin with a sharp beak. The tic burrows into the skin with its head. Tick bites can carry serious illness, including Rocky Mountain spotted fever, other forms of tick typhus, and Lyme disease.

  • Tick typhus

    Also known as Rocky Mountain spotted fever, an acute febrile (feverish) disease initially recognized in the Rocky Mountain states, caused by Rickettsia rickettsii transmitted by hard-shelled (ixodid) ticks. Occurs only in the Western Hemisphere. Anyone frequenting tick-infested areas is at risk for RMSF. The onset of symptoms is abrupt with headache, high fever, chills, muscle […]

  • Tick fever

    Rocky Mountain spotted fever.

  • Tick, Rocky Mountain wood

    See Rocky Mountain wood tick.

  • Tick-borne disease

    The mouth parts of the tick are grasped with the tweezers as close to the skin as possible; Apply firm steady pressure upward until the tick releases – do not jerk, twist, squash or squeeze the tick; Clean the wound and the tweezers with an antiseptic. Do not use petroleum jelly or nail polish remover, […]


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