Tick identification, bites, and diseases

Content Updated: April 2nd, 2026

Key takeaways

• Ticks are blood-feeding arachnids that can transmit diseases. Tick bites are usually painless, so many people don’t realize they’ve been bitten.
• Ticks live in grassy, wooded, and shaded outdoor areas. They attach to humans and animals through “questing,” where they climb onto grass or shrubs and hold out their front legs to latch onto hosts.
• Ticks go through four life stages and must take a blood meal at each stage.
• Common tick-borne illnesses in the U.S. include Lyme disease, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and Ehrlichiosis.
• Prevention and early detection are critical. Wear long sleeves and pants in grassy or wooded areas, stay on cleared paths, and perform full-body checks on yourself, your children, and your pets after outdoor activities.

Jump to section:

• What do ticks look like?
• Common types of ticks
• Tick life cycle and reproduction
• Where do ticks come from? How do you get ticks?
• Are ticks dangerous?
• What happens if you get bitten by a tick?
• How to check for ticks on people
• How to help avoid tick bites

Ticks are parasitic arachnids that feed on the blood of humans and animals. These small pests attach to the skin to feed and can transmit harmful diseases in the process. Because tick bites are often painless, it’s important to check your body, children, and pets after spending time outdoors, especially in wooded, grassy, or brush-covered areas.

Don’t let ticks take over your yard. Terminix professional tick control services are designed to help reduce tick populations around your home. Our experts start with a thorough exterior inspection to identify potential tick hotspots. Once the inspection is complete, they will develop a customized treatment plan tailored to your property and the tick species common in your region.

What do ticks look like?

What are ticks, and what do they look like? Ticks are small parasitic arachnids related to spiders and mites that feed on the blood of animals or humans. Because their bites are usually painless, many people don’t realize a tick is attached until they see or feel it. Common characteristics of ticks include:

• Shape: Oval-shaped and flat before feeding. They become rounder and swollen after feeding.
• Color: Usually brown, dark brown, black, or reddish-brown. After feeding, ticks may appear grayish or bluish as their bodies fill with blood.
• Size: An unfed adult tick is about the size of an apple seed. Nymphs are much smaller, closer to the size of a poppy seed.
• Legs: Adult ticks and nymphs have eight legs, while larvae have six legs.
• Movement: They do not jump or fly. Instead, they crawl and latch onto hosts as they brush past grass or vegetation.

Common types of ticks

Of the nearly 90 tick species found in the United States, only a handful commonly bite humans. Here are some of the most widespread species across the U.S.:

• American dog tick: Brown with white to gray markings, this tick (also called the wood tick) is most common east of the Rocky Mountains and in parts of the Pacific Northwest. It’s often found in grassy fields, trails, and along road edges.
• Black-legged tick: Also known as the deer tick, this species is reddish-brown with black legs. It is common in wooded and brushy areas in the Northeast, mid-Atlantic, and Upper Midwest and is known for transmitting Lyme disease.
• Brown dog tick: This tick is smaller than most species and is reddish-brown in color. They prefer to feed on dogs and can live indoors in homes and kennels.
• Gulf Coast tick: Light brown with silvery markings, this tick is typically found in dense vegetation in states along the Gulf Coast and parts of the East Coast.
• Lone star tick: Reddish-brown and identifiable by a single white spot on the back of adult females, this tick is common in wooded areas across the Eastern and Southeastern U.S. It frequently feeds on white-tailed deer.
• Western black-legged tick: Similar in appearance to the black-legged tick, this species is found along the Pacific Coast, especially in forested and brushy areas of California, Oregon, and Washington.

Because tick distribution can vary by region and habitat, understanding which species are common in your area can help you identify ticks and take appropriate prevention measures.

Tick life cycle and reproduction

The tick lifecycle consists of four life stages: egg, larva, nymph, and adult. To move from one stage to the next, they must take a blood meal from a host. After mating, female ticks feed and lay thousands of eggs on the ground, where the environment provides the necessary moisture for survival. Depending on the species, a tick’s life cycle can take several months to a few years to complete.

Because of this reliance on high humidity, most ticks struggle to survive indoors. If you are wondering how long ticks can live without a host, most species will only survive a few days to a few weeks. The brown dog tick is a notable exception. It is uniquely adapted to complete its entire life cycle indoors and may survive for several months in homes or kennels if pets are present. However, without a blood meal, even brown dog ticks will eventually die off.

 

In their preferred outdoor habitats, survival is also a challenge, as ticks have several natural predators, including:

• Birds (such as chickens, turkeys, and guinea fowl)
• Certain insects, including ants and beetles
• Frogs and lizards
• Small mammals that may groom and remove ticks

Where do ticks come from? How do you get ticks?

Common outdoor tick habitats include tall grass, leaf litter, wooded areas, and other shaded, humid environments where hosts like deer, rodents, and birds are active.

To find a host, ticks use a behavior called “questing,” where they climb onto grass or shrubs and hold out their front legs to latch onto passing animals or people. After feeding, they drop off to molt or lay eggs. Ticks can spread to new areas by hitching rides on hosts and may enter homes on pets or clothing. Ticks do not infest beds or other areas in the home like bed bugs or fleas can.

Are ticks dangerous?

Ticks can be dangerous because some species can transmit serious diseases. While not every tick bite leads to illness, ticks can pose real health risks depending on the species and how long they remain attached to a human. In the U.S., the most common tick-borne diseases include:

• Lyme disease: The most frequently reported tick-borne illness, which can cause fever, fatigue, joint pain, and a rash.
• Rocky Mountain spotted fever: A potentially serious bacterial infection that may cause fever, headache, rash, and muscle pain.
• Ehrlichiosis: A bacterial illness that can lead to flu-like symptoms such as fever, chills, and body aches.

Because ticks can transmit diseases during feeding, it’s important to take preventive measures outdoors and check yourself, children, and pets for ticks after spending time outside.

What happens if you get bitten by a tick?

If you think a tick bit you, contact a medical professional right away. Signs and symptoms of a tick bite can vary depending on the tick species and whether it has transmitted any diseases. Common signs can include a red, itchy rash, swelling, flu-like symptoms, and fatigue.

How to check for ticks on people

Ticks can be a common problem when spending time outdoors, so spotting them early is important. To check for them:

• Thoroughly inspect your body and your pets after outdoor activity.
• Pay special attention to your scalp, behind the ears, underarms, and groin.
• For pets, carefully examine their fur and skin, especially around the ears, neck, and between the toes.
• If you find a tick, remove it promptly with fine-tipped tweezers, gripping it as close to the skin as possible.
• Engorged ticks should be removed carefully to avoid leaving mouthparts behind.
• Clean the bite area with soap and water or an antiseptic, then dispose of the tick by flushing it or sealing it in a bag.

How to help avoid tick bites

Here are some tips to help reduce your risk of tick bites:

• Wear long pants, long sleeves, and socks when walking through grassy, bushy, or wooded areas.
• Tuck your pants into your socks or boots to create an extra barrier.
• Stick to the center of cleared paths and avoid tall grass or dense vegetation, where ticks are more likely to be found.
• Check yourself, your children, and your pets for ticks every two to three hours while outdoors, and do a thorough inspection before returning indoors.

Terminix Tick Control services can provide comprehensive solutions to help protect your family and pets. Our liquid and granular treatments create a barrier that helps reduce tick populations.