Spring and summer encourage spending time in nature. Unfortunately, a walk in the woods or park, a barbecue in the home garden or a picnic on the city lawn risk a close encounter with a tickwhich may or may not carry Borrelia spirochetes, which cause Lyme disease, also known as tick-borne spirochetes or Lyme disease (after the two towns in the US where the first cases were described in the 1970s).
Habits of ticks
An encounter with ticks threatens us in any latitude. These arachnids are parasites of vertebrates (they need their blood to undergo further stages of development) and therefore transmit many diseases. They carry spirochetes Borrelia become by feeding on rodents like mice or squirrels infected with them, forest mammals, cattle, birds, but also dogs and cats. Contrary to popular belief, ticks do not lurk for their victims in the treetops - they prefer shrubs and grasses. They usually hide up to 150 cm above the ground. They don't hunt in the middle of a forest or clearing, but on their outskirts and near paths, as this is where they can most easily meet a potential host. Ticks awaken to life in spring and remain active until late autumn. They like humidity and heat, but they are not fond of hot weather. They are most likely to feed from morning to noon and from 3 pm, 4 pm to dusk.
Infection scenario
Potential prey ticks are able to smell from a distance of 20 meters (they react to the carbon dioxide they exhale, the smell of sweat and body temperature). They move onto it (rather than jumping over it) when they feel a touch. Before they burrow in...
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