J
john
Guest
I went on my first "field trip" (it was a trip and I was in a field occasionally) in the USA last weekend.
My wife and I encountered 3 deer ticks in a recreational picnic/swimming area in Oklahoma. We spotted them due to their size - who knows what nymphs we missed.
My query to the people on the forum from the USA is this: have you ever had a tick? I know it could be embarrassing to admit it but I believe these creatures are something we should all understand and be aware of due to the fact that they transmit a potentially deadly bacterium known as Lyme Disease.
I was disturbed to see all of the small children in the area where we swam and picnicked running around with just short trousers/bathing suits and flip-flops on. I realised that the parents of these children, ordinary people, were obviously not aware of what was lurking on top of the grass stalks by the water.
So please, share your experiences. To those of you for which this comes as a shock, here is what a tick looks like (the one on the right is what you'll see in the wild):
<font size="-2">Photo credit: UWEX.edu</font>
The ones we saw were larger than the following image, but it gives you an idea of just how easy it is to miss these guys:
If anyone would like to learn more about Lyme Disease, here is an excellent Canadian page about it: Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation.
My wife and I encountered 3 deer ticks in a recreational picnic/swimming area in Oklahoma. We spotted them due to their size - who knows what nymphs we missed.
My query to the people on the forum from the USA is this: have you ever had a tick? I know it could be embarrassing to admit it but I believe these creatures are something we should all understand and be aware of due to the fact that they transmit a potentially deadly bacterium known as Lyme Disease.
I was disturbed to see all of the small children in the area where we swam and picnicked running around with just short trousers/bathing suits and flip-flops on. I realised that the parents of these children, ordinary people, were obviously not aware of what was lurking on top of the grass stalks by the water.
So please, share your experiences. To those of you for which this comes as a shock, here is what a tick looks like (the one on the right is what you'll see in the wild):
![DeerTicks1.jpg](http://www.uwex.edu/ces/wihort/images/DeerTicks1.jpg)
<font size="-2">Photo credit: UWEX.edu</font>
The ones we saw were larger than the following image, but it gives you an idea of just how easy it is to miss these guys:
![tick_nymph_hand.jpg](http://www.canlyme.com/tick_nymph_hand.jpg)
If anyone would like to learn more about Lyme Disease, here is an excellent Canadian page about it: Canadian Lyme Disease Foundation.