UC Davis researchers hunt for non-native tick species in San Mateo Co. as part of new study

SAN MATEO COUNTY, Calif. (KGO) -- The emergence of non-native ticks along the Peninsula has put researchers on the lookout.

Along with Lyme Disease, the Lone Star tick can also carry an illness that leads to certain food allergies.

Along the trails of Windy Hill Open Space Preserve, San Mateo County Vector Control swept the areas to collect and study ticks.

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So far, they have not found any Lone Star Ticks.

"Lone Star Ticks carry different pathogens than what we have here and they also cause Alpha-gal syndrome," UC Davis Post-Doctoral Researcher Francesco Rubino said. "So, that is a big concern - we don't have that here. But you never know what's going to happen when you put a new vector in an area that you have certain pathogens that exist."

Researchers from UC Davis and the Bay Area Lyme Foundation combed through the grass Friday, on the lookout for the ticks that can cause people to develop an allergy to foods containing Alpha-gal, like red meat.

They used a technique called flagging.

"The flag mimics an animal brushing against them," Vector Ecologist Tara Roth said. So, when you take a flag and sweep it over, they grab it thinking they're grabbing a potential meal and you flip it over and see them very easily on the white fabric."

A lot of people think that you need to go deep into the woods to run into a tick.

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But we learned very quickly Friday that just off the trail's edge, the risk is just as high.

"Ticks carry a lot of different diseases," Bay Area Lyme Foundation Co-founder Bonnie Crater said. "So, if they bite you and they latch on, they can transmit certain diseases - the most common is Lyme Disease."

Every one of the vector controls' sweeps detects the potentially serious illness in this area.

So besides staying in the middle of the trail, these tick experts say take a shower and put your clothes in the dryer after hikes to kill any ticks.

"We want to encourage everybody to go out and enjoy the outdoors, but we also want people to be cautious," Crater said.

And leave the search for ticks to the experts.