Tick season is back in Manitoba — and the most dangerous ones come out 1st

The snow melting means patio season and pulling out bicycles — but it also means that blacklegged ticks are out in Manitoba.

"They are the first ones to come out and they come out as soon as the snow melts," said Kateryn Rochon, an assistant professor of entomology at the University of Manitoba and tick researcher, during CBC's Radio Noon on Monday.

A Manitoba Lyme Disease Group surveyor out last week found 13 blacklegged ticks in just one outing, according to a news release from the awareness organization.

• Lyme disease, other tick-borne illnesses prompt warning in Manitoba
• Tick season in Manitoba: What you should look out for

Not only are they creepy and crawly, unlike other types of ticks the blacklegged tick can carry Lyme disease, anaplasmosis and babesiosis.

Rochon said people who have grown up in Manitoba are pretty used to wood ticks, which are annoying but not particularly harmful. That means they aren't used to taking precautions for the growing number of blacklegged ticks, she said.

"Blacklegged ticks are different and you should be concerned," she said.

Blacklegged ticks are smaller than wood ticks. The male tick is black and kind of looks like a black sesame seed. The female is brown and black, with black legs.

To prevent any tick bites, Rochon said it's important to cover up and wear bug repellent containing DEET.

"From now on until next winter what you should do is when you go out, especially if you are going to walk a pet or go out for a hike anywhere where there is a little bit of vegetation, you want to have long pants and closed shoes," she said.

• Early tick season: Tips for protecting dogs against ticks
• More than a dozen cases of emerging tick diseases reported in Manitoba in 2 years

As a tick expert, Rochon said she practices what she preaches.

"I have the pastiest, whitest legs you could ever imagine because I am always wearing long pants with wool socks over them. I'm not saying it's the most attractive thing but it's definitely the safest thing," she said with a laugh.

People also need to do daily tick checks on themselves, their children and their pets.

There will be a long time for people to master that routine Rochon said, because ticks can pose a risk from now until next winter.

While a tick bite doesn't necessarily mean a transmission of the disease, the province has started a new online program to streamline the process for people if they are bit.

Manitobans can submit a photo of a blacklegged tick online and Manitoba Health staff will review the image to see if it is a blacklegged tick and contact the person with further instructions if it is.

Rochon said it's a good step forward from the old program that required sending every tick in to the province to be examined.

But she added, "The best way to prevent tick-borne illnesses is to not get a bite, and the best way to not get a bite is to be vigilant."