Tick risk in Sussex County, Delaware
Sussex County covers 25 towns and carries the 2nd-highest tick-borne-disease baseline of Delaware's 3 counties, with a Lyme rate of 24 cases per 100,000 people a year (112th of 1378 counties in the South). CDC surveillance lists Deer tick, American dog tick, and Lone star tick as established here. Pick your town below for today's score, a 7-day outlook, and what's driving it.
Highest and lowest tick risk in Sussex County
Peak-season modeled risk. Tick risk is local, even within one county.
At the summer peak, tick risk across Sussex County runs from Henlopen Acres (moderate) at the high end to Fenwick Island (low) at the low end. The difference is habitat: forest cover across the county ranges from 1% to 83%, and more forest and woodland edge means more places ticks can quest for a host.
- Henlopen AcresModerate risk
- Slaughter BeachModerate risk
- Ocean ViewModerate risk
- DelmarModerate risk
- BladesModerate risk
Tick species in Sussex County
CDC county surveillance (established or reported)
- Deer tickEstablished
- American dog tickEstablished
- Lone star tickEstablished
- Gulf Coast tickReported
Established in this county for the deer tick, the main Lyme carrier. “Not established” means no CDC surveillance record for Sussex County, not that a town is tick free. Source: CDC tick surveillance (ArboNET Tick Module), 2025.
Diseases found in local ticks
Pathogens detected in ticks tested from Sussex County (CDC tick-testing surveillance, 2025). This lists what has been found, not how common it is.
Tick control in Sussex County, DE
Professional tick control across Sussex County usually means a barrier treatment along the lawn edge, leaf litter, stone walls, and shady borders where ticks wait for a host, applied two to four times a season by a licensed pest control company. It is the single most effective way to cut tick numbers in the part of the yard your family actually uses, and it matters most in Sussex County's more wooded towns.
How much does tick control cost in Sussex County?
Most Sussex County homeowners pay about $100 to $200 per visit for professional tick spraying, or roughly $350 to $600 for a full season of barrier treatments, depending on lot size and how wooded the property is. Quotes are free, so it costs nothing to get a real number for your yard.
From a vetted local tick exterminator serving Sussex County. No cost, no obligation.
Common questions about ticks in Sussex County
Which towns in Sussex County have the highest tick risk?
At the summer peak, Henlopen Acres carries the highest modeled tick risk in Sussex County, followed by Slaughter Beach, Ocean View, Delmar, Blades. Risk tracks how wooded a town is: forest cover across Sussex County ranges from 1% to 83%, and the more forest and woodland edge a town has, the more habitat ticks have to quest from. Fenwick Island sits at the low end. Every town has its own daily score, so check the one nearest you.
What ticks live in Sussex County?
CDC surveillance records 3 established tick species in Sussex County: Deer tick, American dog tick, Lone star tick. The blacklegged (deer) tick is the main carrier of Lyme disease in the Northeast. "Not established" for a species means there is no CDC surveillance record for the county, not that the tick is absent.
Is Lyme disease common in Sussex County?
Sussex County reports about 24 Lyme cases per 100,000 people a year (U.S. CDC), the 112th-highest of 1378 counties in the South and the 2nd-highest of Delaware's 3 counties. Lyme is the dominant blacklegged-tick disease, so TickZone uses this county rate as the disease baseline behind every town's score.
All towns in Sussex County
Tick risk is local. Pick the town nearest you.