It’s spring time and tick season is upon us

1. Use caution in tick infested areas

2. Wear protective clothing

3. Use an EPA approved repellant

4. Perform daily tick checks after any outdoor activity A tick must be attached for a minimum of 24 hours before the infection can be passed on, further stressing the need for prompt and proper tick removal. If you are bitten by a tick or work in known tick habitat, watch for symptoms for up to 30 days, and call a healthcare provider if symptoms develop. Deer ticks can transmit not only Lyme disease, but also two other tick-borne infections that are endemic in Maine: anaplasmosis and babesiosis. Cases of both these diseases are on the rise in Maine. Cases of anaplasmosis doubled for the second year in a row and cases of babesiosis increased from 2013. The majority of tick-borne illnesses occur during the summer months when ticks and humans are active outdoors. Remember that the deer tick is the only tick that can transmit Lyme disease, but there are other species of ticks throughout the state. Tick identification references are available to order online at Maine CDC’s website. The University of Maine Cooperative Extension Tick ID Lab offers free identification services and educational resources. Maine CDC has Lyme disease information is available at www.maine.gov/lyme. Lyme disease data is available through the Maine Tracking Network at www.maine.gov/idepi under Epidemiology Information on the left hand side of the page. The University of Maine Cooperative Extension Tick ID Lab submission instructions can be found at http://extension.umaine.edu/ipm/tickid.