By Angelina Livigni
While Long Island’s cold winter seems far from over, in actuality spring is right around the corner. As outdoor activities begin again a question emerges: Did the harsh winter kill the ticks?
“It’s definitely a consideration you have to make when you do anything outdoors on Long Island,” Anna Giulia Polli, an active Long Island hiker, said.
Short answer, no. But more interestingly, winter does not provide a safety blanket from ticks that many assume.
“They’re active now,” Scott Campbell, Laboratory Chief of the Suffolk County Deptartment of Health Services, said. “Any day above 40 degrees, and you are at risk of being bitten.”
Think of places like Minnesota, a state that frequently goes through harsh winters. Ticks are still active, and Minnesota is actually one of the leading states in tick-borne illnesses.
Ticks do not die from cold, rather they go into a dormant state. Hydration matters more to ticks rather than temperature. The heavy snow that Long Island received this winter might have acted more like a blanket to insulate ticks, rather than killing them.
“If you put leaf litter on a tick or snow on a tick, you’re going to insulate them against that dryness,” said Campbell. “One of the big theories is that snow is actually insulating the tick population and will lower that effect of desiccation (removal of moisture) and possibly improve their survivability underneath the snow.”
Snow aside, ticks have built in mechanisms to survive the cold.
“They’re able to reduce the water in their body so they don’t freeze as readily,” Campbell said. “Then they produce glycol-like compounds—kind of like antifreeze. By reducing the water and producing glycol-like compounds, they reduce the likelihood of them freezing in cold weather.”
Experts recommend that you take three main precautions to avoid tick bites. First, cover up. Tuck your pants into your socks and wear long pieces of clothing to avoid skin contact. Second, wear bug spray, and make sure you use the correct one. Check if the spray is meant for skin or clothing. Lastly, do tick checks every morning and night.
“Tick checks are the last line of defense to any tick-borne illness,” Campbell said. “The earlier you get them off, the greater you reduce your risk of acquiring any pathogens.”
In the event that you are bitten by a tick, Long Island has resources for use.
“We opened our clinic in August of 2023,” Karen Wulffraat, the administrative director of the Tick-Borne Disease Resource Center & Clinic, said. “It’s located in Hampton Bays, and we have doctors who are experts in tick-borne disease.”
Wulffraat also emphasized that the center is open year-round.
“We operate all year,” “We don’t just operate in the summer months.”
Bottom line? Ticks are not going anywhere.
“Tick bite prevention is up to us,” Campbell said. “Take precautions. Cover up, use repellents, and do tick checks.”
Angelina Livigni is a reporter with The SBU Media Group, part of Stony Brook University’s School of Communication and Journalism’s Working Newsroom program for students and local media.
