As part of the Fight the Bite campaign, Northwest Mosquito Abatement District provides information on tick control and tick bite prevention to slow the spread of illnesses within our community.
The biology of a tick
- Ticks belong to the arachnid family, sporting 8 legs
- They have four stages of life: egg, six-legged larva, eight-legged nymph and adult
- At each stage, the tick will feed on an appropriate host. In the adult stage, female ticks will feed first, only afterwards will they lay eggs.
- Ticks latch on well, by burying their head in the host, and can go unnoticed for a long period, making them efficient carriers for disease.
- There are two groups of ticks: “hard” ticks and “soft” ticks. “Hard” ticks feature a hard outer shell. “Soft” ticks have a soft outer shell and prefer to feed on bats and birds.
- Ticks wait for hosts at the top of long grasses and shrubs. When brushed by a host the tick will climb on. They cannot jump or fly. Some ticks can crawl several feet to latch onto a host.
- Diseases carried by ticks include Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted fever. Learn about more tickborne illnesses on the Illinois Department of Public Health’s website.
- Although more than 15 species of ticks exist in Illinois, the most common ticks humans are likely to encounter are the American dog tick, lone star tick, blacklegged (deer) tick, brown dog tick and winter tick. Learn more about the common ticks on the Illinois Department of Public Health’s website.
New tick and pathogen surveillance program
In 2025, Illinois amended the Mosquito Abatement Districts Act to allow Mosquito Abatement Districts to conduct tick surveillance. The graphic below showcases the tick surveillance findings by the Lab team from Fall 2024 to Fall 2025.
Prevent the bite
- The best way to prevent a tick bite is to avoid tick-infested areas. Below are other methods to check yourself for ticks and prevent the bite.
- Wear long sleeves and pants when outdoors. Tuck your pants into your socks and your shirt into your pants to prevent the tick from crawling under your clothes. Light colored clothes make it easier to spot ticks.
- Use insect repellents with 20% DEET, spraying mostly on clothing, as directed on skin. Find the right repellent for you using the search on the Fight the Bite page.
- Stay in the middle of paths.
- Use permethrin to pretreat clothes, but not skin, for further protection.
- If ticks are crawling on clothing, use the sticky side of tape to remove them, fold them tape closed and throw in the trash.
- Follow the Illinois Department of Public Health’s Don’t Let a Tick Make You Sick checklists for yourself and your pets:
Check yourself:
- In and around the hair
- In and around the ears
- Under the arms
- Inside the belly button
- Around the waist
- Between the legs
- Back of the knees
Check your pet:
- In and around the ears
- Around the eyelids
- Under the collar
- Under the front legs
- Between the back legs
- Between the toes
- Around the tail
Get the tips! Stop the ticks. Prevent Tick Bites. – CDC
Fun Fact!
“Ticks can be active on winter days when the ground temperatures are about 45 Fahrenheit.”
Removing a tick
If you find a tick latched on you, remove it promptly.
- Do not burn the tick with a match or cover it with petroleum jelly or nail polish.
- Firmly grab the tick as close as possible to the skin and gently, but firmly, pull directly upwards. Do not twist the tick.
- Ticks can be safely disposed of by placing them in a container of soapy water or alcohol, sticking them to tape or flushing them down the toilet.
- For more support when removing a tick, use the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s Tick Bite Bot which will assist in removing a tick and determining whether medical attention is required.
