Warm weather also means that ticks become active, and this can lead to the transmission of tickborne disease. The tickborne diseases most often found in Virginia are Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever and ehrlichiosis. Lyme Disease Lyme disease, first identified in 1975 in Lyme, Connecticut, is a bacterial illness transmitted by a tick bite. Although the disease is found more frequently in the North and the upper Midwest, cases have been reported in Virginia since 1982. For the past 5 years an average of 77 cases have been reported annually, mainly from the eastern and central parts of the state.
Ticks complete their life cycle from eggs to adults in approximately two years.
The adult deer tick feeds and mates on the white-tailed deer in the fall and winter. In the spring the tick drops off to lay eggs which hatch into larvae. During the summer, the larvae feed on small rodents, most commonly the white-footed mouse. If the rodents are carrying the Borrelia burgdorferi bacteria that cause Lyme disease, the tick larvae can become infected. Once they feed, the larvae molt into nymphs which are dormant during the winter and become active the following spring and summer.