With lengthening daylight and warmer temperatures, kids are eager to play outside on playgrounds and in organized sports on broad, grassy fields. But what if those fields hide creatures that could harm your students? What if they’re harboring tiny, blood-sucking parasites?
Welcome to May, everyone—it’s tick season.
Ticks are not dangerous in and of themselves. The little arachnids are as aggravating as mosquitos: they both suck a little blood from the host, fall off, lay eggs, and continue their respective life cycles. No, the real concern lies in the diseases a tick can carry—while it’s taking a few drops of blood, it may also infect the host with a crippling illness like Lyme disease.
According to WebMD, a child may be suffering from Lyme disease if he/she has the following symptoms:
- erythma migrans, a rash occurring in 70%–80% of cases that can form a bull’s-eye ring around the site of the tick’s bite;
- flu-like symptoms, including headaches, fever, and fatigue;
- arthritis;
- neurological issues, including migraines, poor coordination, memory loss, and difficulty concentrating; and
- occasionally heart problems and eye inflammation.
Lyme disease cases seem to be on the rise. Minnesota’s Department of Health says that there was a 57% jump in Lyme disease cases from 2012 to 2013 (from 912 cases to 1,431 cases). Overall, the United States racked up over 22,000 confirmed cases of Lyme disease in 2012 as reported by the Center for Disease Control (CDC)—with another 8,000 incidents marked as “probable” cases from potential false-positive test results on top of that. Furthermore, experts believe this winter’s heavy snows have better insulated ticks from the cold, increasing this summer’s tick population.
How do you best protect your students from ticks?
First, check to see if your school’s campus is situated in a high-risk zone. The CDC says that 95% of all Lyme disease cases in 2012 were reported from 13 states, mostly confined to the Northeast and upper Midwest sections of the country. The threat is most serious in these locations, but your school could still be at risk in other parts of the U.S.
According to the University of Rhode Island’s TickEncounter Resource Center, ticks prefer wooded areas—places with leaves and shade. By keeping your borders trimmed and removing piles of dead leaves, you reduce the risk of harboring ticks in your places of outdoor play and study.
It stands to reason, then, that the closely trimmed grass of athletic fields, playgrounds, and lawns should not require massive treatments to prevent ticks. Only where play areas border tall grass or wooded areas should further action be taken to mitigate the risk of tick exposure. There are chemical insecticides available—like permethrin, cyfluthrin, and carbaryl, recommended by the University of Minnesota—that can help your campus reduce risks.
Or, you may prefer to use a “greener” alternative around children, like food-grade diatomaceous earth (DE). If you spread DE on the borders of your outdoor play spaces, the fine powder will cut through the ticks’ exoskeletons and kill both the adults and larvae. (This technique also works on fleas and other “hard shell” pests.)
Despite your best efforts, someone will occasionally return from a day spent outside carrying a tiny eight-legged passenger. Make sure that everyone does a thorough check of their bodies when changing clothes at the end of the day and—if a tick is found—that it is removed promptly and completely. It usually takes at least 24 hours for a tick to transfer the Lyme disease vector to a host after the initial bite, according to the CDC.
Identification of different tick species is helpful, too. Deer ticks are tiny—think smaller than a pin head—but they’re the main vector for most human cases of Lyme disease. Wood ticks (also known as American dog ticks) are also miniscule and mottled in color; these are responsible for Rocky Mountain spotted fever and some cases of tick paralysis. If you're in Europe, watch out for the castor bean tick with comparatively long legs—it can give hosts Helvetica spotted fever and other diseases, too.
Regardless of the tick type, all parasites should be promptly removed once discovered. Check out the video below for a step-by-step guide in removing these potentially dangerous parasites, and have a fantastic summer season!
Whether you're new to facilities management or want to learn new ways to keep your school's campus picture-perfect for tours and safe for all, consider attending ISM's workshop The Well-Kept Campus: Strategies for the Facilities Manager in Stowe, Vermont. As part of our Summer Institute, you'll participate in practical discussions and leave with battle plans for both day-to-day and long-term facility management goals.
Additional ISM resources:
Research: IPM Standards for Schools Tactics and Resources for Reducing Pest and Pesticide Risks in Schools and Other Sensitive Environments
Private School News Vol. 8 No. 7 Pesticides on Your Floors?
ISM Monthly Update for School Heads Vol. 9 No. 6 Bedbug "Epidemic" Means Schools Have to Be Ready
Additional ISM resources for Gold Consortium members:
I&P Vol. 36 No. 13 Green Strategies for Pest Control
I&P Vol. 38 No. 4 Your School's Summer Program and Risk Management
I&P Vol. 26 No. 12 Stability Markers: A Checklist for the Comprehensive Long Range Property/Facilities Plan
