{"id":102406,"date":"2025-05-23T14:17:37","date_gmt":"2025-05-23T14:17:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/?p=102406"},"modified":"2025-05-30T15:38:48","modified_gmt":"2025-05-30T15:38:48","slug":"uri-tick-expert-shares-tips-for-a-tick-free-summer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/2025\/05\/uri-tick-expert-shares-tips-for-a-tick-free-summer\/","title":{"rendered":"溏心vlog免费B站 tick expert shares tips for a tick-free summer"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 May 23, 2025 \u2013 The 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s resident \u201ctick guy\u201d gets calls for his expertise far and wide, consulting regularly with media outlets across the country, even celebrity sites concerned about the new tick-driven meat allergy<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thomas Mather<\/a> is director of 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s Center for Vector-Borne Disease, and regularly fields national and even international inquiries on the topic. Here in southern New England, his TickEncounter Resource Center (TickEncounter.org<\/a>) offers a wealth of information and resources so that people can stay ahead of, or away from, tick exposure this summer.<\/p>\n\n\n

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溏心vlog免费B站 tick expert Thomas Mather is director of the University\u2019s Center for Vector-Borne Disease and its TickEncounter Resource Center.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Weather watch<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mather says Rhode Islanders can evaluate tick risks just by looking out the window or assessing their yard conditions this Memorial Day weekend.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTicks don\u2019t like dry weather,\u201d he says. \u201cSo if you have to water your lawn on Memorial Day, that\u2019s actually not good for ticks.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If our area can stay dry until after the Fourth of July, Mather says, Rhode Islanders will benefit from fewer ticks, as wet weather provides the climate they need to reproduce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In fact, one way to minimize tick bites after a day in the woods is to throw your clothes in the dryer, not the wash. Ticks can survive the wash but drying your clothes for 5 to 10 minutes on high heat replicates the dry July weather that challenges their survival.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Lone star ticks are increasing in our region; 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s online resources offer information to avoid them.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

Mather even tested this theory in a hot tub one day, giving some ticks a soaking at 102 degrees over three days. They survived.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He says a good dry cycle replicates the desiccating that puts them out of action for good.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When Mather\u2019s team started researching ticks in the 1990s, they found ticks mainly in the southern part of the state. He\u2019s since seen them move to more dense urban settings. Areas near Narragansett Bay have the highest numbers of ticks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The team has also seen increasing numbers of lone star ticks. While they don\u2019t spread Lyme disease, the species is very aggressive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lone star ticks are most active in spring, while October and November bring an increase in black-legged ticks. Mather says that not all ticks are the same<\/a> and their bites can spread a variety of diseases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s important to know they are all different, and to understand the importance of personal protection,\u201d Mather says. His blog (uri.edu\/tickencounter\/blog\/<\/a>) shares regular updates on best practices, including his new mantra: \u201ctuck, treat, tight,\u201d an easy way to remember to tuck clothes in, treat clothes and shoes to repel ticks, and don tight clothes or compression wear to prevent them from getting underneath.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regardless of method, Mather counsels the importance of taking a vigilant approach against all ticks, anywhere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAll ticks need to be protected against,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For more resources and recommendations, visit 溏心vlog免费B站 <\/em>TickEncounter<\/em><\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KINGSTON, R.I. \u2013 May 23, 2025 \u2013 The 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s resident \u201ctick guy\u201d gets calls for his expertise far and wide, consulting regularly with media outlets across the country, even celebrity sites concerned about the new tick-driven meat allergy. Thomas Mather is director of 溏心vlog免费B站\u2019s Center for Vector-Borne Disease, and regularly fields national […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":25,"featured_media":102407,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[5,1913,1905],"class_list":["post-102406","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-archives","tag-college-of-the-environment-and-life-sciences","tag-public-engagement","tag-research"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102406","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/25"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=102406"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102406\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":102422,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102406\/revisions\/102422"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/102407"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=102406"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=102406"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.uri.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=102406"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}