FAQ

Yes—tick identification and pathogen testing through NJ Ticks 4 Science is currently offered at no cost to New Jersey residents. However, not all tick species are tested.

NJ Ticks 4 Science! tests blacklegged “deer”, lone star, and Gulf Coast ticks for select human-relevant pathogens, while Asian longhorned ticks and American dog ticks are not tested because they are not known to transmit pathogens relevant to human health in New Jersey.

Blacklegged ticks are tested for Borrelia burgdorferi (Lyme disease bacteria), Borrelia miyamotoi, Babesia microti, and Anaplasma phagocytophilum; Lone Star ticks are tested for Ehrlichia chaffeensis and Ehrlichia ewingii; and Gulf Coast ticks are tested for Rickettsia parkeri.

Asian longhorned ticks and American dog ticks are not tested, as they are not known to transmit pathogens relevant to human health in New Jersey.

As a free, community-supported program with limited funding, we focus on these priority tests to keep results available at no cost. If you’d like to support the program, please consider making a donation.

Results are typically available within 1–2 weeks (not including weekends) after your tick is received.

Each submission undergoes careful processing, including species identification under a microscope, DNA extraction, and qPCR testing for select pathogens.

NJ Ticks 4 Science! is an anonymous research program. Each tick submission is assigned a unique ID number and is not linked to personal identifiable information.

If you choose to provide an email address to receive updates, it is encrypted within the submission system and is not accessible to our team.

There is also a chat feature where submitters can ask questions about their individual ticks. We ask that users do not include personal identifiable information in this chat. Please note that any information voluntarily entered into the chat is the responsibility of the user and may be visible if someone searches using the associated submission ID.

Submission data may be used in aggregate to support tick surveillance and research in New Jersey, but individual participants are never identified.

There’s no way to completely avoid ticks, but a few simple steps can greatly reduce your risk of being bitten.

Before going outside:

• Wear light-colored clothing to help spot ticks more easily
• Tuck pants into socks and shirts into pants to create a barrier
• Use an EPA-approved repellent such as DEET, picaridin, Oil of Lemon Eucalyptus, or IR3535 on exposed skin
• Treat clothing and gear with 0.5% permethrin or wear pre-treated clothing

After spending time outdoors:

• Check your clothing for ticks and tumble dry on high heat for 10–15 minutes
• Perform a thorough tick check on your body — including behind ears, behind knees, between fingers and toes, around the waistline, in the hair, and in the belly button
• Shower soon after being outdoors to help remove ticks that have not yet attached

Don’t forget pets:
Check dogs and outdoor cats regularly, especially around the ears, collar area, tail, groin, and between the toes.

No—ticks do not fall from trees.

Ticks live close to the ground in grass, leaf litter, and low vegetation. Instead of dropping from above, they wait on vegetation with their front legs outstretched — a behavior called “questing.” When a person or animal brushes past, the tick grabs on and begins to crawl upward to find a place to bite.

This is why ticks are commonly picked up while walking through tall grass, wooded areas, or even along the edges of trails and backyards — not from overhead.

Red meat allergy, also known as alpha-gal syndrome, is a tick-associated allergic reaction to a sugar molecule called alpha-gal that is found in most mammal meat (such as beef, pork, lamb, and venison).

In the U.S., this condition has been linked to bites from the lone star tick.

After a tick bite, some people develop an immune response that causes allergic symptoms when they eat red meat or other products from mammals. Unlike most food allergies, reactions often occur several hours after eating, not immediately.

Not everyone who is bitten by a lone star tick develops alpha-gal syndrome—but some do, which is why awareness is important.

No—red meat allergy (alpha-gal syndrome) cannot be determined by testing a submitted tick.

Alpha-gal syndrome is related to exposure to a sugar molecule called alpha-gal that can be introduced during a lone star tick bite. Our laboratory testing uses qPCR to detect specific disease-causing pathogens in ticks. However, alpha-gal is not a pathogen, and it cannot be detected using qPCR.

Because red meat allergy is a human immune response, there is currently no way to determine from a tick whether someone will develop this condition.

If you are concerned about possible symptoms related to alpha-gal syndrome, please contact a healthcare provider.

A negative tick test means that the pathogens we tested for were not detected in that tick.

Our program focuses on testing for the most common and relevant pathogens associated with the tick species we receive, but we do not test for every possible pathogen due to funding constraints.

It is also important to remember that if you are submitting a tick, it means you were in an area where tick exposure occurred—and there may have been other ticks present that you did not notice. Ticks are very small: nymphs are about the size of a poppy seed, and adults are about the size of a sesame seed, so they can be easy to miss.

For these reasons, a negative tick test cannot completely rule out the possibility of illness. If you develop symptoms after a tick bite, it is important to consult a healthcare provider.

No. A positive tick test means that a pathogen was detected in the tick—not that it was transmitted to you.

Even if a tick carries a pathogen, transmission does not always occur. The likelihood of transmission can depend on how long the tick was attached. For example, a tick that is significantly engorged (swollen after feeding) may have been attached longer than a flat tick, which can increase the chance of pathogen transmission.

Tick testing results should not be used to diagnose illness. If you develop symptoms after a tick bite, it is important to consult a healthcare provider.

Sharing your tick test results with your healthcare provider can help inform conversations about possible exposure. While tick testing cannot diagnose illness, knowing whether a pathogen was detected in the tick may provide useful context when evaluating symptoms.

Tick test results should be considered alongside clinical symptoms and medical evaluation. If you feel unwell after a tick bite, be sure to seek medical care and share any relevant tick testing information.

Ticks can be active throughout the year, but activity varies by species.

Different tick species have peak seasons, meaning some are more commonly encountered in certain months than others. However, as long as temperatures are above freezing, there is typically at least one tick species active that may bite humans.

For this reason, tick exposure is possible in all seasons, not just during the warmer months.

The amount of time a tick needs to be embedded to transmit disease depends on both the tick species and the pathogen. In many cases, transmission does not happen immediately.

For example, the bacteria that cause Lyme disease (Borrelia burgdorferi) are transmitted by blacklegged ticks (Ixodes scapularis) and are typically transmitted after a tick has been embedded for about 24–48 hours. In contrast, Powassan virus—also transmitted by blacklegged ticks—can be transmitted much more quickly, in some cases within minutes of being embedded.

Other tick-borne pathogens, such as Anaplasma phagocytophilum (also transmitted by blacklegged ticks) and Ehrlichia chaffeensis (transmitted by lone star ticks, Amblyomma americanum), may be transmitted within a few hours of being embedded, meaning that even rapid tick removal may not always prevent infection.

Because timing varies, it is important to check for ticks regularly and remove them as soon as possible. Prompt removal reduces the risk of disease transmission.

Yes, deer and other wildlife play an important role in tick populations, but the relationship is complex.

Deer are important hosts for adult blacklegged ticks (Ixodes scapularis) and help support tick populations by providing blood meals for adult ticks to reproduce. However, deer do not infect ticks with the bacteria that cause Lyme disease (Borrelia burgdorferi)

Small mammals, such as white-footed mice, are key reservoirs for Lyme bacteria. These animals can infect ticks when they feed, which is how ticks become capable of transmitting disease agents to humans.

Other wildlife, including birds and mammals, can also carry ticks into new areas, helping expand their geographic range.

Yes, certain landscaping practices can help reduce tick exposure around homes and yards.

Ticks are prone to drying out and need humidity and access to hosts to survive. Increasing sunlight by opening up shaded areas, trimming back dense vegetation, and mowing tall grass helps dry out the environment, making it less suitable for ticks.

Clearing leaf litter and overgrown vegetation, along with keeping grass short, also makes yards less attractive to small mammals that ticks feed on, as these animals prefer areas with cover from predators.

In addition, invasive plants such as Japanese barberry can create dense, humid conditions that support tick survival and should be removed when possible.

While these steps can lower risk of tick encounters, they do not eliminate ticks entirely, so regular tick checks are still important.

Ticks can attach anywhere on the body. Common attachment sites include the scalp and hairline, head and neck, behind the ears, under the arms, around the waist, inside the belly button, behind the knees, and between the legs. Because ticks can be very small, it is important to check the entire body carefully after spending time outdoors, including less visible parts of the body.

No, only the blacklegged (deer) tick can transmit the Lyme bacteria (Borrelia burgdorferi) in the eastern United States.

Different tick species can carry different disease-causing agents, which is why identifying the type of tick is important for understanding potential health risk.