The young ticks that plagued your spring and summer are all grown up and about to get more active as October begins.
That means you are still at risk of getting sick from the bite of a disease-carrying tick while hiking, hunting or harvesting until temperatures fall below freezing. So far, disease has been recorded at the highest rates in the midcoast.
Overall, researchers expect an activity level on par with last year’s, said Griffin Dill, who coordinates the tick lab at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension. The summer weather didn’t affect tick populations much, according to Dill.
Deer ticks, which carry Lyme disease, will remain active until temperatures are consistently below freezing, which could be November or December.
Maine has recorded 2,345 cases of that disease so far this year and more than 1,000 other tick-borne disease cases.
Last year, 2,943 total cases of Lyme disease were reported for all of 2023, along with 777 of anaplasmosis and 194 of babesiosis.
As of Sept. 16, the highest rates of Lyme disease were in Knox, Lincoln and Hancock counties, followed by Waldo County. Lyme disease can cause fever, fatigue, headaches and rashes followed by health issues including arthritis, joint pain, nerve pain, inflammation and an irregular heartbeat if it isn’t caught early and treated with antibiotics.
Anaplasmosis, another tick-borne disease that causes fever and chills, headaches and muscle aches, is most prevalent in the same counties at roughly half the rate of Lyme.
The network also tracks babesiosis, which is caused by parasites transmitted through the tick bite and can either cause flu-like symptoms or not be noticeable at all. There are the fewest cases of that spread throughout the state.
The midcoast and neighboring Hancock County have had the highest rates in recent years, too.
If you find a tick on you, you can send it to the university’s tick lab for identification and $20 disease testing.
