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Tick Season Starts in Germany With Record Counts Reported and Exotic Species Spreading

Warmer winters are accelerating tick activity, prompting renewed guidance on vaccination, prevention, correct removal.

Overview

  • Reports cite record tick numbers this year in Germany, with notified FSME cases said to be roughly ten times higher than last year.
  • The Robert Koch Institute continues to register several dozen Hyalomma finds annually, a large hunting tick that can carry Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever virus and rickettsiae.
  • Expanding vectors include the meadow tick Dermacentor reticulatus and the brown dog tick Rhipicephalus spp., linked to Rickettsia, Babesia and Ehrlichia infections.
  • Researchers have detected Alongshan virus in ticks in Bavaria and Brandenburg, highlighting additional agents under surveillance.
  • Health bodies urge quick removal with proper tools, advise against home remedies such as oil or nail polish, and recommend FSME vaccination in defined risk areas.