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Ticks and mosquitoes out in full force with late spring

From boot season, to bug season, we all welcome this warmer weather, but when it arrives, so do the insects.

SAINT PAUL, Minn -- From boot season, to bug season, we all welcome this warmer weather, but when it arrives, so do the insects.

The two biggest culprits in Minnesota, ticks and mosquitoes, each share different stories this spring.

"There are a lot of bugs waking up right now," Metropolitan Mosquito Control District (MMCD) spokesman Mike McLean says.

Lucky for us, mosquitoes are not one of them.

McLean says the mosquitoes likely won't be out in full force for a few more weeks yet.

"Mosquitoes take a little while to develop in the water and when the water and the ground are cold it takes them a little while longer to emerge," McLean says.

That means Minnesotans will have a full three to four weeks of spring without swatting and scratching, but once the mosquitoes do emerge, McLean says watch out.

"We're likely going to have a pretty good mosquito explosion around mid-May."

While the mosquitoes are still prepping for spring, ticks on the other hand, are all ready to go.

"This is going to be the beginning of a bad deer tick season," MMCD tick specialist Janet Jarnefeld explains.

Most years ticks emerge in waves, but Jarnefeld says the late spring will bring all the ticks out at the same time this year.

"We had a very snowy winter and that is actually better for ticks, because they have a little warm place to stay over the winter," Jarnefeld says.

For ticks, experts say you should tuck your pants into your socks when you're out in the woods.

They also encourage people to check themselves and their pets for ticks whenever you leave a wooded area.

McLean says you can't do much to control tick populations, but with mosquitoes residents play a vital role.

"Get rid of those old ties. Get rid of those buckets, those cans, anything around that's collecting water."

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