Spectrum News speaks to Dill about the lengthening tick season

Griffin Dill, integrated pest management professional and manager of the UMaine Tick Lab, spoke to Spectrum News about the trends helping lengthen the tick season on both ends of winter. This past winter didn’t have enough deep cold to really put a damper on overwintering ticks, while the extended snow cover in much of the state helped insulate them in the ground. The warmer winter causes ticks to remain active into December and reemerge earlier in April as winter condenses. “It really benefits the ticks overall, having that kind of shortened warmer winter. They’re able to survive the winter easier, and they’re now afforded a much greater length of time in order to find a host,” Dill says.