06/16/2026
Tick post! Ticks are Arachnids but aren't spiders. I keep finding them on the playground climbing equipment at a local park; this is the third one I've found so far. This individual is an adult male Dermacentor variabilis, an American dog tick. So I show up at Plumb Lake County Park on 14JUN2026 and head over to the playground. Lo and behold, for the third time, I see a tick on the climbing thing. He was tucked up all tight (Photo 1), and I got close and took a picture. All of the sudden, he started waving his legs around (Photo 2.)
Ticks have a a thing on their front legs called Haller's organ. Stealing some internet info here: "Haller’s organ is a complex, microscopic sensory structure located exclusively on the first pair of legs of adult and nymph ticks. It functions as a tick’s primary survival tool, enabling them to detect host odors, carbon dioxide, temperature changes, and humidity." So this tick sensed me and started doing what is called" Questing" behavior. Because they don't jump, they'll get on something (like a blade of grass, or here, playground equipment) and start waving the front legs up and down, hoping to catch whatever they sensed in the area using their Haller's organ. I was smart enough to not get close enough to take him on a quest!
Anyway, American dog ticks can transmit Rocky Mountain spotted fever and tularemia, so be vigilant in doing tick checks on a daily basis. Even if you're not in the grass, these ticks can find you.
