The Tick Almanac
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Ticks in Rhode Island

Common species, seasonal activity, exposure scenarios, what to do after a bite, and the state’s tick-identification options. Sourced from the state conservation + health + extension agencies.

Common species in Rhode Island

Rhode Island follows the academic led source pattern. The species below are drawn from the state-authority sources listed in the sidebar Data Row.

III
4-6 mm
Macro photo of an unfed adult american dog tick with a millimeter scale
American dog tick
Dermacentor variabilis
Identify →
IV
4-6 mm
Macro photo of an unfed adult lone star tick with a millimeter scale
Lone star tick
Amblyomma americanum
Identify →
V
3-4 mm
Macro photo of an unfed adult brown dog tick with a millimeter scale
Brown dog tick
Rhipicephalus sanguineus
Identify →
EMERGING WATCH

When ticks are most active

Blacklegged tick: nymph activity May through July drives the highest-risk window for human Lyme exposure, with adult activity in spring and fall extending into mild winter days. American dog tick: most active spring through mid-summer. Lone star tick: April through late August where established. Broad prevention caution spring through fall.

Status:source caveated editorial

Where you're most likely to encounter ticks

Coastal forest and shrub habitats, wooded and grassy trail edges, low forest vegetation along leaf litter, stone walls and brushy yard edges, dog walking, hiking, beach-adjacent dunes and salt-marsh edges, and yard/garden work near woods.

Disease context

Each disease named below carries an evidence tag per the Data Row policy. Pills indicate the strength of state-specific evidence, not the severity of the disease. Symptoms should always be routed to a clinician; this is orientation, not diagnosis.

  • Lyme diseasestate surveillance confirmed
  • Anaplasmosisstate surveillance confirmed
  • Babesiosisstate surveillance confirmed
  • Ehrlichiosisstate surveillance confirmed
  • Powassan virus diseaseregional pattern
  • Borrelia miyamotoi diseaseregional pattern
  • Rocky Mountain spotted fevernon diagnostic mention only
  • Tularemianon diagnostic mention only
  • Alpha-gal syndromeregional pattern
  • STARIregional pattern

If you find a tick — what to do

Tick-ID program status:state id program partial

Map resolution notes

state only.RIDOH, URI TickEncounter, and CDC sources support state-level statements; given Rhode Island's small geographic footprint and the resolution of available state and academic sources, most species/range/density claims are most defensibly framed at the state level rather than at county or municipal resolution.

State sources

Primary species source
URI TickEncounter Resource Center for state species framing and tick identification; Rhode Island Department of Health (RIDOH) tick and tickborne disease pages for state-level disease framing.
Primary health source
RIDOH tickborne disease pages and clinician reference materials for disease and clinician-routing context; CDC tickborne disease pages for national context.
Primary extension source
URI TickEncounter Resource Center, URI Cooperative Extension, and URI tick research program for species activity, habitat, prevention, and removal detail.
Surveillance
RIDOH tickborne disease surveillance summaries, CDC NNDSS for Lyme/anaplasmosis/babesiosis/ehrlichiosis counts, CDC Where Ticks Live, and URI TickEncounter resources where map or surveillance context is used.