When it comes to bugs, not all creepy-crawly critters are created equally. Some bugs are insects, and some are not. Insects are small, six-legged animals, often with wings. Ticks may be small, and some may have six legs when they’re young, but ticks aren’t insects. They’re arachnids and share more characteristics with spiders than ants, flies, beetles, and other insects.
Are Ticks Related To Spiders?
Ticks are more closely related to spiders than they are to insects. Like spiders, they are a part of the arachnid family, along with mites and scorpions. Both spiders and adult ticks have eight legs and lack antennae and wings. Can ticks spin webs? Unlike their spider cousins, ticks are opportunistic predators, waiting for their prey to wander close enough to latch onto.
What Is The Difference Between A Tick And A Spider?
Both spiders and ticks are arachnids, but ticks aren’t spiders; rather. Ticks are a mite species, and mites are tiny, primarily parasitic pests that often cause itchy bites that can transmit various diseases.
Spiders and ticks are built differently. Both are arthropods– invertebrates with external skeletons and jointed legs, but spiders have segmented bodies while ticks do not, and Spiders have a separate cephalothorax and abdomen. Ticks have small, flat, unsegmented bodies that enable them to attach easily to a host.
These arachnid cousins have very different diets as well. Most spiders consume insects, but some will eat nectar, pollen, seeds, leaves, web silk, or dead arthropods. Some even eat their exoskeleton after shedding it! Larger spider species may consume small lizards, birds, bats, or fish. Humans, pets, and livestock are only part of the spider diet in monster movies, and they do not seek out humans as dietary staples.
On the other hand, ticks feed on the blood of mammals – people, pets, wild animals – and livestock, as well as on birds, reptiles, and amphibians. They are parasites that latch onto their host with their mouthparts, feasting on a blood meal.
Tick Bites vs. Spider Bites
Unlike ticks, spiders rarely transmit infectious diseases, and their bites are usually harmless. The exceptions are black widow and brown recluse spider bites that transmit toxic venom, causing pain, flu-like symptoms, skin lesions, and neurotoxicity.
Ticks, on the other hand, are a vector of multiple diseases. It’s estimated that more than half the ticks on Long Island carry Lyme disease. This bacterial disease is transmitted to humans through the bite of the black-legged tick, causing flu-like symptoms and a distinctive bullseye rash. East End residents are at risk of tick-borne diseases, including anaplasmosis, babesiosis, ehrlichiosis, tularemia, and Rocky Mountain spotted fever, so closely monitor the results of any tick encounters.
Call East End Tick Control® For Peace Of Mind
East End Tick Control® is Eastern Suffolk County’s most-experienced tick control company, providing the East End with effective tick extermination treatments since 1997. Protect your family from disease-carrying ticks year-round by requesting a free estimate now or by calling our Southampton office at (631) 287-9700, our East Hampton office at (631) 324-9700, or our Southold office at (631) 765-9700.
In 2021, the United States 
While you are taking steps to protect yourself, your family, and your pets from ticks, the 
While spring might not officially be here yet, it’s not too early to start checking for ticks. Conventional wisdom tells us that cold winter and lots of snow help kill off insects, including ticks. So it feels like we should be safe from the little critters as the snow melts and we start to see warmer temperatures, and sadly, that’s not necessarily the case.
Autumn and winter are times for fall festivals and other outdoor events. From skiing, ice fishing, and other winter sports, it is a time of many outdoor entertainment options. Along with spending time outdoors comes the risk of exposure to ticks. But how bad is that risk? 
Now that the official start of winter is only a few short weeks away and the temperatures have been steadily growing cooler, many of us tend to forget that ticks still pose a genuine threat when we go outside. On any day that the temperature is more than 40 degrees, ticks will be active and looking for their next meal. So how do you protect yourself when you don’t know what the temperature is going to be? Fortunately, we have the ideal off-season protection solution – 
Many long-time Long Island residents would argue that the fall is the best time of the year on the East End. Farm stands are full of locally grown pumpkins, squash, and apples. Every weekend in October, there are fall festivals and events for all ages. But there is a hidden outdoor predator that lurks amid the pumpkin patches and hayrides. Ticks remain active until the temperatures dip under 40 degrees. Here are some tips to help prevent tick bites while you are out enjoying all that a Long Island autumn has to offer. 
Lower New York and Long Island experienced a warm summer, with temperatures higher than 2020 and significant rainfall, with record rains in July alone. The combination means that the tick population will be especially active and thriving this fall and into early winter. Not only will the ticks emerge in increased quantities, but local area scientists have also made the unpleasant discovery that this year’s tick population carries noticeably higher percentages of dangerous diseases than in years past. Long Islanders must act quickly to safeguard themselves from this season’s rapidly emerging tick population. 
Tick season is still going strong and will be until temperatures drop below 40 degrees. It is essential to protect not only yourself and your family but your pets as well. Not only do you want to keep your precious pet safe and prevent them from contracting Lyme disease or other tick-borne diseases, but your pets can also unknowingly introduce ticks into your home. Even worse, mosquitos can transmit the parasite, leading to heartworms, a preventable yet potentially deadly disease. So how do you protect yourself and your dog or cat? 
When you hear about tick prevention, the main focus is usually on preventing ticks from biting you while you are outdoors. While this is important, not bringing ticks into your home is critical as well. Having an infestation in your home can be dangerous to your health if the ticks are carrying bacteria or infections such as Lyme disease. The tick extermination experts at East End Tick and Mosquito Control® are here to give you three tips to prevent an indoor tick infestation.
