# Identifying Ticks with colored light



## Martin (Jun 17, 2007)

I've learned on CPF that colored light is very useful to identify specific things such as blood or fingerprints or even scorpions.
Well, this year we have far too many ticks around my area and every time we come back from the woods, we have to examine each other carefully to make sure we've not been bitten.
It would be really cool if a tick could be spotted easily under a certain color of light. Anyone experience with this ?


----------



## GreySave (Jun 17, 2007)

Hmmm. That WOULD be useful. We only pick off about one tick a year from our greys, so I never even thought of trying that. Will be interesting to see the replies.


----------



## Spin (Jun 18, 2007)

I thought ticks are for kids?


----------



## sharpone (Jun 18, 2007)

Spin said:


> I thought ticks are for kids?


HAHAHAHAHA... good one!


----------



## defloyd77 (Jun 18, 2007)

Can't help you there, but I've read that studys have show that ticks seem to like going on light colored clothes.


----------



## TORCH_BOY (Jun 18, 2007)

Reptiles carry ticks to


----------



## senecaripple (Jun 18, 2007)

Spin said:


> I thought ticks are for kids?



naa, silly rabbits can get them too!


----------



## fod (Jun 18, 2007)

I too live in a tick infested area. We get explosions of the damned things every spring. When returning from walking the dogs we must check for the evil vampiric insects.

I know from experience that they are attracted to light colors,but are easy to spot on white colors. They sem to make the jump less onto darker clothing, but are harder to spot. That being said, if they are not found crawling thier way to a hairy spot, they are more often found by tactile (fingers) means than visual. After they are attached, I would guess that the evil bugs are found 90% of the time by feel and 10% visually. In long hair or in a dogs coat a light would probably be next to useless. I'd love to be proven wrong, but I know from experience tick-checking my bouvier the bugs are found more by touch than sight. This seems mostly due to the fact that they migrate to the high/hairy and hidden/hairy parts of the body.

DamnIhateticks


----------



## TITAN1833 (Jun 18, 2007)

scorpion ticks can be detected useing UV light i think :thinking: but dont qoute me on that.hmmm scorpion ticks. im going to go now and google search.educate myself


----------



## greenLED (Jun 18, 2007)

I don't know if UV makes them glow, but try a red LED light. The contrast between their reddish bodies and the red light might make them standout for you to spot them more easily.


----------



## GreySave (Jun 18, 2007)

<< I know from experience tick-checking my bouvier... >>


Wow! You mean there really is a dog under there? 

We used to have them as guard dogs. One had my supervisor pinned against the wall (Standing in front of him with both front paws on either side of my super's head  ) for about 10 minutes. REALLY miss that dog.......


----------



## z96Cobra (Jun 19, 2007)

I don't know what color light to use, but you need to be listening to Brad Paisley's new song... Ticks. 

Roger


----------



## MacTech (Jun 20, 2007)

It depends on the type of Tick, i'd guess....

Wood Ticks and Deer Ticks don't seem to flouresce, however, an engorged/partially engorged tick can be shriveled, once removed from it's host, with a stock MagCharger

the other colors of light seem to be equally ineffective

now if it's The Tick we're talking about, the Nigh-Invulnerable Big Blue Bug of Justice!, any light could work, as The Tick himself has been quoted as saying "Sorry I haven't been around much lately, I'm easily distracted by shiny objects...."


----------



## Codeman (Jun 20, 2007)

z96Cobra said:


> I don't know what color light to use, but you need to be listening to Brad Paisley's new song... Ticks.
> 
> Roger



Different kind of search!


----------



## MSaxatilus (Jun 20, 2007)

> We only pick off about one tick a year from our greys.....




You have aliens!?!? Can I come for a ride in the saucer?


OK, that was a terrible joke. I have the same problem with ticks too. I'd love to have a light that could help find the little bas.... bugs.

MSax


----------



## LuxLuthor (Jun 21, 2007)

Paint some glow paint on them....then you'll find them.


----------



## Raptor# (Jun 21, 2007)

Hmm, i'd really like to know too. 
Well... next time our cat has a tick (happens about once a week), i'll try my UV light on it.


----------



## Marduke (Jun 21, 2007)

UV lights do make scorpions glow, and they show up very well. As for the ticks, I've heard it, but never seen it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BNClgoBgwtE


----------



## defloyd77 (Jun 21, 2007)

I don't think a red led alone will work, well at least searching on light colored skin, same problem as seeing red on a white map. I'd like to see if the blue and red combo of the Gerber Carnivore would work though.


----------



## DM51 (Jun 22, 2007)

My dog picks up ticks from time to time. Next time he gets one, I’ll try out different lights on it and see if any colors show it up better than others. 

It might depend on the exact species. I know some scorpions show up very well under UV light, but there are many different types and colors of scorpion, and it may be that some show up very well while others don’t.


----------



## Martin (Jun 24, 2007)

Obtained a dead tick that volunteered for my test. I tried all my available LED light colors (red, orange, yellow, green, cyan, blue, white) and found it most visible under white light. Not that it showed some sort of flourescence.
I'm curious for the outcome of Raptor#'s UV test.


----------



## defloyd77 (Jun 24, 2007)

Martin, did you try different combinations of colors?


----------



## Raptor# (Jun 27, 2007)

Got to try my UV-light on our cat today, he had another tick...

No luck. It just looked like anything else, it did NOT fluorescent under UV light.

The light i used was this one: 
http://www.szwholesale.com/ultra-violet-torch-p-237.html

I think its a rather high nm (around 400), so a UV light below 370 or even 350 might make the ticks fluorescent. Can't tell for sure untill someone with a better UV light gives it a try.


----------



## Omega Man (Jun 27, 2007)

Well it's a bit too late for me to get an answer on this. My gf's dog was diagnosed with Lymes diease yesterday. She was acting very mopy, was limping and acting immobile, had red around her eyes. It really sucks, but atleast she's on medicine now for it, and was looking better after 1 day of treatment. No cure , but treatment. Now, unfortunatly I feel a bit vindicated about my tick related outburst in the Mosquito Patch thread.


----------



## defloyd77 (Jul 30, 2007)

Anyone do any further expirementation with this? My dog now has a tick in her ear, but won't let me check it right now, but when she falls asleep I will try a couple of color combinations.


----------



## NA8 (Jul 30, 2007)

I recall being told back in the scouts that ticks like Bay trees (think: Bay leaf herb). They said they'll drop on you if you stand under those trees. Anyone know if this is true ?


----------



## StefanFS (Jul 30, 2007)

This is way off topic. Just som info. There are some support for the theory that eating garlic/garlic capsules repel ticks.

http://www.bth.se/fou/forskinfo.nsf/alfs/ef7b5b63b84666d4c1256e2a00340af5

http://www.costco.myodi.com/Pages/Healthnotes.aspx?org=leiner&page=newswire/hnwire_2000-08-24_2.cfm

I regularly eat lots of garlic and capsules in the spring/summer since I'm sometimes in areas crawling with ticks. I haven't been bitten for years. It also have effect on gnats and mosquitoes.


----------



## smokelaw1 (Jul 30, 2007)

I live in CT, Lyme central. We walk out dogs in an area where they pick up ticks constantly. Mostly DOg ticks, thankfully. I would LOVE to find a way to discover them sooner. 
Already do the garlic trick, along with Deet and peremthin. My wife got a bad one in her side earlier this year. I got a deer tick in me that was so small, I couldn't believe it when I found it. Honestly, prevention is good, but being able to find them faster would do us a great service (it takes a while for them to transmit diseases). 

It would be cool. I'll try out a few LED combinations next time we find one.


----------



## defloyd77 (Jul 30, 2007)

Thanks for the link Stefan. I read around about garlic repelling mosquitos, but it's nice to know it may help with ticks too. Too bad dogs can't ingest garlic.


----------

