IU expert: Expect high tick activity in 2023 in US

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. (WISH) — Americans can expect high tick activity in 2023.

A director of Public and Environmental Health at Indiana University says the mild winter throughout most of the United States is to blame. Graham McKeen says tick season generally extends from April through September, and peaks around late May and early June.

He offers tips on how to avoid ticks. “Ticks also, they don’t jump. They don’t fly. They don’t fall on us from trees. They hang out at the tops of vegetation often on trails, and they climb up us. So, walking in the center of a trail, avoiding really woody or brushy areas with high grass and leaf litter is going to help.”

Remove ticks quickly if they are found. McKeen says most tick borne diseases take from 24-48 hours of biting to transmit.

He says anyone who’s bitten by a tick and experiences symptoms — including fatigue, aches, pains, fever, chills, or an unexplained rash — should see a doctor.