How a professor is working to make sure residents aren’t exposed to diseases transmitted by ticks

HUNTERSVILLE, N.C. — In the summer most people avoid bugs, but UNC Charlotte Associate Professor Rafael Vieira and his students hope to find some.

“The ticks, they tend to be on the vegetation waiting for an opportunity for when an animal or person passes by,” Vieira said. “This is when they bite us, and they can transmit to us diseases that we don’t want.”

Student researchers like Ieman Khan go to Cowan’s Ford Wildlife Refuge weekly in search for ticks.

“Being a public health major, I wanted to be able to combine both research with community health,” Khan said.

The team collects them, brings them back to the lab and tests for disease.

“Last year we found some that are positive for Rickettsia, which is the bacteria that causes spotted fever,” said Vieira. “Fortunately, in two years now that we are collecting, I did not collect a single blacklegged tick, which is the tick that transmits Lyme.”

Thanks to a grant from UNC Charlotte, Vieira is partnering with Mecklenburg County to expand surveillance to 42 local parks and greenways.

“We select these areas based on the number of visitors. For example, this week we’ll be covering Freedom Park,” Vieira said.

As his busy season winds down, Vieira wants people around ticks to stay safe.

“Charlotte is an area where people spend a lot of time outside,” he said. “We just want to map and make sure these places that we, me, my kids are playing are safe.”

Consumer Reports offers tips for keeping ticks out of your yard.

They include:

• Getting rid of leaves, brush and other debris that ticks can use for shade.
• Trim tall grass and weeds, especially around walkways and other high-traffic areas.
• If your yard is next to any woods, spread wood chips or gravel to build a three-foot barrier.

©2026 Cox Media Group