Ticks in Alaska?

It’s only day two of our State Tick Tour and we’ve hit one of the exceptional U.S. states in terms of tick risks. Alaska is not traditionally home to many species of common human-biting ticks. Geography and climate make it a challenging habitat for some of the riskiest human biters like the deer tick (Ixodes scapularis). But, there are plenty of ticks that go unnoticed due to their host preferences, and many hitch a one-way ticket on humans and animals traveling from further south. TickReport has received a few dozen ticks from Alaskan residents, but travel history and molecular analysis confirmed that the ticks were recent imports on people or animals.

Ixodes angustus

Ixodes angustus is a species of tick related to the deer tick (Ixodes scapularis) and is found on rodents such as squirrel and rabbits. TickReport has received more than 80 of these ticks from California, Oregon, Washington, Utah, and parts of Canada including British Columbia. Of those, 25% were found on a dog, cat, or other non-human host. An additional 25% were found unattached but in a house with one or more pets. This is a common occurrence for ticks that are not traditionally human-biters: our pets may explore places where we don’t walk and may invite passengers that we wouldn’t normally encounter.

Be on the lookout for the Moose tick

Known by a few names, the “moose tick” or “winter tick” (Dermacentor albipictus) is a species of concern for Alaskan officials. This species is causing significant damage in parts of New England and Eastern Canada due to their aggressive feeding on moose and other hooved animals. Thousands of ticks can attach at once to an animal and can cause serious health problems for individual moose and the moose population as a whole.