Tracking Ticks with Digital Images: Surveillance Study Findings

Digital tools may improve how ticks are identified and tracked. A study from Canada suggests that image-based tick identification can support surveillance when images are of sufficient quality.

This raises an important question: can digital images reliably identify ticks and assess risk? In many cases, image-based methods may provide accurate species identification and useful public health data.

“This study demonstrates that image-based tick identification may be an accurate and useful method of detecting ticks for surveillance when images are of suitable quality,” explains Koffi from the Public Health Agency of Canada.

Forty-one veterinary clinics across Quebec submitted digital images of ticks collected from pets through an online platform for identification by an entomologist.

Image Quality Determines Accuracy

The investigators noted challenges in obtaining high-quality images and provided guidance to improve submissions. Ticks were to be oriented so the head, dorsal shield, and ventral surface were visible, with clear focus and a ruler included for scale.

Of the 382 images submitted, 284 (nearly 75%) were of sufficient quality for analysis. Among these, 97% were correctly identified to species.

Most specimens (254 of 284) were also suitable for assessing engorgement status. In 98% of cases, digital images accurately identified whether ticks were engorged, partially engorged, or not engorged.

Seasonal Patterns and Surveillance Potential

The study found that Ixodes scapularis tick activity in Canada peaks in the spring and fall, with the highest numbers observed between October and December.

Image-based systems may also detect other tick species of public health importance, expanding their value beyond a single species.

Expanding Tick Surveillance with Digital Tools

Koffi and colleagues suggest that citizen-based and clinic-based image submissions could complement traditional surveillance methods by improving detection of emerging tick populations.

“If available to the public, an electronic image-based tick surveillance tool could speed monitoring of tick activity, reduce costs, and provide rapid feedback,” the authors conclude.

This approach may also address gaps in geographic data. As Eisen notes, the absence of tick records in a region does not necessarily indicate absence of ticks, but rather a lack of collected data.

This study illustrates a practical approach to improving tick surveillance, where earlier detection of tick populations may support prevention and timely diagnosis of Lyme disease.

Patients and clinicians may benefit from review of Lyme disease symptoms, awareness of coinfections, and guidance on tick bite prevention, including how to recognize and respond to tick exposure.

References

1. Koffi JK, Savage J, Thivierge K et al. Evaluating the submission of digital images as a method of surveillance for Ixodes scapularis ticks. Parasitology (2017).
2. Madder M, Walker JG, Van Rooyen J et al. e-Surveillance in animal health. Parasitology. 2012;139(14):1831-1842.
3. Eisen RJ, Eisen L, Beard CB. County-scale distribution of Ixodes ticks in the United States. J Med Entomol (2016).

Dr. Daniel Cameron, MD, MPH
Lyme disease clinician with over 30 years of experience and past president of ILADS.

Symptoms • Testing • Coinfections • Recovery • Pediatric • Prevention