[MDOsprey] tick ID (?)_ after birding
Robert Weiner (rweiner@gwis2.circ.gwu.edu)
Thu, 15 Jul 1999 04:05:16 -0400 (EDT)
cybirders,
can anyone provide advice regarding possible a deer tick found after
birding? I birded the Huntley Meadows area (hardwood forest, fresh-water
marsh) in Northern VA on saturday, and tonight removed what looked like a
deer tick. I've never seen one, but it is about the size and color of a
pencil point, metallic dark gray.
After removal (which was easy), the tick (?) walked away, leaving a small
bump that itched mildly like a mosquito bite. Inspection revealed two
more such bumps, about 1 cm apart. My experience is limited to dog ticks,
which never walk away after removal, which usually entails killing them.
Should I be concerned about lyme disease? Is there anywhere I can find
out about its incidence in the area? What should I look out for? Can the
tick (which I put in a plastic container) itself provide any useful info?
I had experienced some severe, brief chills a few hours before finding it,
which for me is unusual in summer, but had attributed them to either an
incipient cold or the unseasonably cool weather here the last few days
(75-80, rather than 85-90)!_
I suppose the tick could have come from my yard, which is highly urban,
but the nearest deer (and fox) are only about a mile away, in Rock Creek
park, and squirrels are abundant, raccoons, skunks, and opossums
occasional.
Any advice would be appreciated. thanks, and sorry for any cross-posting.
Robert Weiner (rweiner@gwis2.circ.gwu.edu)
George Washington University
Washington DC 20052
202 994 5981