Scientists at Marshfield Clinic Research Institute are asking the public to submit ticks for a research study called the Tick Inventory via Citizen Science.

The study is surveying the distribution of tick species, including any new, invasive ticks. They will also identify the microbes carried by each tick, including pathogens that may cause diseases, such as Lyme disease, anaplasmosis, and babesiosis, and non-pathogenic microbes that may contribute to a tick’s likelihood of carrying disease.

The study was first launched in central Wisconsin with the hope to receive a few hundred ticks. So far, participation in TICS has exceeded expectations. Of the ticks collected, about 4,200 or more than 75% are the American dog, or wood tick. The majority of the remainder are the deer, or blacklegged tick. Much of that difference is likely due to the larger wood ticks being easier to spot than the smaller deer ticks.

While the peak of tick season has passed, ticks are still active.

“We often see a second peak of deer ticks in the fall, which are the ones that primarily carry disease in Wisconsin,” said Alexandra Linz, Marshfield Clinic Research Institute associate research scientist. “The deer tick’s small size and greater likelihood of carrying illnesses like Lyme disease is what makes it critical to perform tick checks after spending time in wooded or brushy areas,” Linz added.

The influx of ticks allowed the research team to detect much rarer species in Wisconsin, including 13 lone star ticks. The lone star tick causes Alpha-gal Syndrome, also known as the meat allergy, and it’s a species of concern that is being found more often in the Midwest.

If you’re out hunting, you can check your kills for ticks and contribute those as well. You’ll likely spot ticks near the eyes or ears, and it’s best to check as soon as possible as the ticks will start detaching as the body cools.

For more information, or to request a pre-paid collection kit be sent to you, contact tics@marshfieldclinic.org or 1-715-389-7796, extension 16462. Parks and nature centers interested in having kits available for their visitors also are encouraged to contact Marshfield Clinic Research Institute.

Once the tick, dead or alive, has been placed in the collection kit, just drop it in the mail to submit. Any tick found on people or pets is appreciated. Each kit will come with a unique identification number that people can use to look up, via an online dashboard, the species of ticks they submitted.

TICS will continue collecting ticks until winter ends tick activity for the year.