South Jersey Could Experience a Tick Surge This Spring

This is not great news for those of us looking forward to spending more time outdoors.

The experts at Rutgers University claim an exceptionally rainy 2018 could cause a surge in the number of ticks we see in New Jersey this spring.

The researchers list confirmed 11 different tick species present in New Jersey.

Professor Dina M. Fonseca, director of the Center for Vector Biology in the Department Entomology at Rutgers–New Brunswick, tells Patch.com that blacklegged ticks are "highly sensitive to drying out and can be killed by bouts of dry weather." Not a good thing when it's been raining a lot in NJ again this year.

Fonseca added that because we had so much rain fall last year, the threat of contracting Lyme disease and other pathogens via ticks increases.

Reportedly, the Asian tick was confirmed in a number counties in the Garden State last year. It can mean a particularly serious threat to livestock, according to NJ Department of Agriculture. In additional to farm animals, the Asian tick can host in humans and pets, and has been linked to Spotted Fever.

Here are a few things you can do to protect yourself and your pets from ticks (MedlinePlus.gov):

• Use a chemical repellent with DEET, permethrin or picaridin.
• Wear light-colored protective clothing.
• Tuck pant legs into socks.
• Avoid tick-infested areas.
• Check yourself, your children, and your pets daily for ticks and carefully remove any ticks.

SOURCES: NJ Agricultural Experiment Station/Rutgers; Patch.com; Medline Plus