While going for a nature walk in Logoly State Park last week, I must have stepped in a tick nest. A few hours after our hike, I found dozens of nymph-stage ticks (I think deer or dog ticks) all over my ankles, feet, legs, thighs and derriere. They were such small dark specs that I could not make out what kind of bug they were, but I saved a few of them and took a look under the scope. They are definitely tiny ticks, what I later found are referred to a “seed ticks”, the nymph stage of either deer or dog ticks:
The day after my encounter, I was increasingly itchy all over and found hundreds of bites across my body (I’ll spare you the pictures). Today, three days later, I am still applying lots of anti-itch creams and trying not to scratch. Vinegar helps with immediate relief, but the creams are longer-lasting. Anyhow, watch out for these!