Warmer temps and high humidity breeds Texas tick infestations

More rain can lead to more ticks, like this one that is ready to bite.

Ticks thrive in warm and humid climates, and with recent heavy precipitation across many areas in the country, the spread of tick-borne illnesses is something to consider with steps to mitigate potential infestations.

Similar to spiders, ticks are arachnids and not an insect, according to the National Wildlife Federation. "The ways in which temperature, humidity, and precipitation are impacting the spread of tick-borne illnesses are complex, and scientists are continuing to learn more," the report said.

Ticks are capable of transmitting several diseases to humans. This includes Lyme disease, anaplasmosis, ehrlichiosis spotted fever, rickettsiosis, tick-borne relapsing fever and tularemia, according to a post on the Texas Health and Human Services website.

To help reduce the spread of ticks, Rogelio Mercado, a county extension agent with the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension, recommends the following tips:

The Texas A&M Tick App for Texas also details several measures people can take to protect themselves from ticks.

This includes wearing light-colored, full-length clothing whenever possible and covering exposed skin with repellents, using spray-on permethrin clothing repellents, and tucking pant legs into socks to keep crawling ticks outside of clothing (a ring of masking tape around the ankles on top of closed-toe shoes is also recommended).

During outdoor activities and following these outings, the Texas A&M resource also suggests performing frequent examinations of all clothing and exposed skin for ticks and removing outdoor clothing, sleeping bags, and blankets following a hike with the items immediately placed in a washing machine or stowed in a sealed plastic bag. While bathing, re-examine skin surfaces for ticks and removing any attached ticks using tweezers, tick removal tools, or fingers protected by a tissue or sanitary wipe.

Tick bites: Symptoms and diseases

The previously mentioned Texas Health and Human Services post also details possible symptoms related to tick-transmitted diseases: