With the return of the summer heat, the St. Louis County Departments of Public Health and Parks and Recreation are teaming up to help monitor the unwelcome return of the tick population, and they need residents’ help.

Tick collection sites have been added to three parks: Lone Elk, 1 Lone Elk Park Road, 63088; West Tyson, 131 N. Outer Road, 63025; and Greensfelder, 4515 Hencken Road, 63069. At Greensfelder and Lone Elk, the tick boxes can be found at the trailheads by the visitor centers, and at West Tyson, the tick box is located at the prairie entrance. Residents can also send ticks to the county’s Vector-Borne Disease Prevention Office in Olivette, 10521 Baur Blvd., 63132.

Residents are encouraged to drop any ticks they find in the collection boxes at the parks. This will help the Department of Public Health to monitor and control the tick populations, which usually increase during heat waves. Ticks can be dead or alive when brought to collection boxes, and there are collection envelopes at each box to put the ticks in.

“Every year is a good year for ticks,” Dr. Kanika Cunningham, director of the Department of Public Health stated in a press release. “While not all ticks carry diseases, about 10% do, making it crucial to take precautions.”

For more information and to request a “tick kit,” visit https://stlouiscountymo.gov/st-louis-county-departments/public-health/vector-borne-disease-prevention/citizen-science/tick-watch-stl/.

The “tick kit” is a Neoprene tote with carabiner and will contain a tick-key, magnifier, tick identification magnet, antiseptic wipes, bandages, repellant wipes, a bookmark on how to check for ticks and a pocket reminder card on tick removal.