Asian Longhorned Tick - A New Invasive Species

There is a new invasive species in New Jersey: the longhorned tick (Haemaphysalis longicornis).  The longhorned tick is a member of the family Ixodidae which means that it is a hard tick.  Hard ticks have three distinct life stages.  Depending on the temperature, the tick's eggs usually hatch between 60-90 days.  When the larva emerge from the eggs they have three sets of legs.  After having a blood meal they molt and become nymphs and acquire four sets of legs.  Nymphs feed for approximately 7 days and detach.  The nymph then spends about 40 days living under the vegetation before molting and becoming an adult which also has four sets of legs.

Larva (Source: lucidcentral.org)

Nymph (Source: lucidcentral.org)

Male (Source: lucidcentral.org)

The longhorned tick finds a host using a behavior called "questing".  A questing tick crawls up the stems of grass or perches on the edge of leaves.  When the tick detects a host it uses its extended front legs to attach itself to the host.

Questing Tick
Credit: Graham J. Hickling, The University of Tennessee. Public domain.

After having fed on a host for about seven days, the female detaches itself and begins searching for a suitable place to lay eggs.  Within 1-2 weeks the female tick will lay around 2,000 eggs during a 2-3 week period.  Because the longhorned tick is a parthenogenesis species, it can reproduce asexually.  The female does not require a male tick to reproduce.

While the longhorned tick is new to New Jersey it has been a pest in New Zealand for decades. In New Zealand the tick has been found on the following animals.

Mammals

• Brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula),
• Cat (Felis domesticus),
• Cattle (Bos taurus),
• Dog (Canis familiaris),
• Donkey (Equus asinus),
• Goat (Capra hircus),
• Horse (Equus caballus),
• House mouse (Mus musculus),
• Pig (Sus scrofa),
• Rabbit (Lepus cuniculus),
• Sheep (Ovis aries)

Birds

• Dosmestic duck (Anas boscas var),
• Domestic fowl (Gallus gallus),
• House sparrow (Passer domesticus),
• Kiwi, Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus),
• Skylark (Alauda arvensis),
• Thrush (Turdus philomelus),
• Turkey (Meleagris gallipavo)

Prevention
Most tick bites can be prevented.   Some of the simple things you can do to prevent exposure to ticks are:

• Avoid areas bushy and grassy areas where ticks normally live.
• Wear light colored clothing which makes it easier to identify ticks.
• Wear clothing and boots that have been treated products containing 0.5% permethrin.
• Use Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) registered insect repellants.
• Walk in the center of trails.
• Check you clothing and body for ticks after you have been outside.
• Shower soon after you have been outdoors.

Tick Removal
Removing a tick isn't difficult.  Here are the simple steps for removing a tick:

1. Use a pointed tick removal tweezer
2. Disinfect the area with rubbing alcohol
3. Grab tick close to skin and use slow, steady motion to pull tick out
4. Disinfect the area again
5. Consider Tick Testing for infection

Here is a short video that demonstrates the proper method for removing a tick.



Identification
If you find a tick you can bring it to the Rutgers Cooperative Extension office located at 2 Academy Dr, Westampton, NJ 08060 for identification. Ticks should be placed in a sealed plastic bag or a container with a small piece of moist paper towel to prevent dehydration.



Additional Information

Tick Bites Prevention - Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

How to Recognize a Longhorned Tick - Center for Vector Biology, Rutgers University

Tick Biology - UC Davis, Department of Entomology and Nematology

TickEncounter Resource Center - University of Rhode Island

Zoogeography of the New Zealand Tick Fauna - University of Wellington, New Zealand