Are There Lyme Disease Ticks in Florida?

Posted by Mosquito Squad

January 6, 2025

Are There Lyme Disease Ticks in Florida?

Whether you are a Florida resident or visitor, it is important to understand the potential for local pest encounters.

In years past, we have been told that Lyme disease is not a specific threat in Florida. However, more recently, experts assert that while Lyme disease is less of a threat here than in the Northeastern United States, it is still believed to be a vastly underreported tick-borne infection.

Yes, There Are Lyme Disease Ticks in Florida

By varying degrees, you will find the presence of black-legged ticks in many outdoor Florida environments. There are a few things that these ticks need to survive and thrive in any location, and while our climate is much hotter and sunnier than ticks prefer, we have untold numbers of natural water sources and shade that make life possible here. Add to that, we have ample wild animal hosts from which they can feed. Plus, there is an enormous population of humans and pets that love being outdoors in Florida, and ticks can live a happy life here just like the rest of us.

Where Can Ticks Be Found in Florida?

Depending on the species of tick, there can be a difference in where they might be found in Florida. For instance, black-legged and Lone star ticks seek grassy areas, underbrush, and dense canopies. Other ticks, like the American dog tick is usually not found under dense areas of tree canopy.

What Other Tick Diseases Can Be Transmitted by Florida Ticks?

If we were to name the blacklegged tick by all its potential diseases, it might go something like this: Ehrlichiosis tick, Babesiosis tick, Anaplasmosis tick, and Powassan tick. One of the more terrifying aspects of tick-borne illnesses is that they are not often quickly diagnosed, because we might not even realize we have come in contact with a tick at all. And while it takes 24-48 hours of tick attachment to transmit Lyme disease, the blacklegged tick needs only 15 minutes to transmit the potentially fatal Powassan virus. And this is just a sample of diseases that might be transmitted by only one tick species!

Lone star ticks have their own potential for disease transmission, including Heartland virus, Tularemia, STARI (Southern Tick Associated Rash Illness), and Alpha-gal syndrome, an acquired, lifelong allergy to proteins found in red meat. The American dog tick can transmit some of these same afflictions, as well as posing a risk for Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever and tick paralysis.

Is There Pest Control for Ticks in Florida?

When you work with Mosquito Squad of Northeast Florida, you can be assured that you will receive effective Jacksonville tick control methods and formulas. This includes our traditional barrier mosquito control treatment, which is also effective on ticks and other pests, as well as tick tubes that help treat ticks in a wider trajectory in the fall and winter. In addition to our two-fold tick control options, our highly skilled pest control technicians will seek out potential areas throughout your property where ticks might be living and breeding. They will break them up, treat them, and speak with you about preventing them from reforming.

Some of these tick prevention methods might include:

Eliminating tall grasses, whether decorative or natural
Mowing regularly, keeping your grass as short as possible
Eliminating plant life around your property that might be food for other wild animals, such as deer and rodents that can carry ticks into your yard
Recommending other pest control services that will eliminate food sources for other wild animals, like lizards and snakes, which can also carry ticks into your yard
Keeping debris from piling up in your yard that could provide shelter for ticks to live beneath

Additional tick safeguards include:

Performing a tick check on your pets each time they come indoors in spring, summer, and fall
Performing a tick check on yourself and your family after spending time outdoors in wooded, grassy spaces, such as hiking trails and shaded playgrounds
Outdoor workers should perform a tick check daily, especially those that perform their jobs in wooded or grassy areas

Who Is at the Biggest Tick Bite Risk?

Toddlers, children, outdoor workers, and pets are at the top of the list for acquiring a tick bite. This exposure risk is greater for any person or any animal that might be more apt to encroach on natural tick habitats on the ground or just off the ground.

Who Is at the Biggest Risk for Serious Tick-Borne Disease Infections?

As with many serious diseases, those who are at the greatest risk for serious illness or death from a tick-borne illness are those under the age of five, above the age of 60, and the immune-compromised.

Mosquito Squad offers the following Florida Jacksonville pest control services:

All our yard treatments provide about three weeks of effective pest control, including our natural pest control.

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Put our pest control solutions to work for all your Florida pest problems. Call Mosquito Squad of Northeast Florida at (904) 844-0816 to learn more about our formulas and outdoor pest control plans.