If the thought of creepy crawlies sends shivers down your spine, fair warning: Tick season is upon us.

According to a report by Ohio’s Country Journal, experts are seeing a shift in the number and species of ticks here; and many bring health concerns with them.

“We’re seeing changes in the distribution of a lot of medically important tick species,” Risa Pesapane, an associate professor in ecosystem and wildlife health at Ohio State University told the Country Journal. “We have had new ticks arriving in the state of Ohio and becoming established here.”

Sure, there’s the usual American dog tick; but now we’ve got black-legged ticks, lone star ticks, Gulf Coast ticks and the Asian longhorn tick.

Pesapane said the Asian longhorn ticks will be expected all along the Ohio River this summer.

Dr. Timothy McDermott said the Asian longhorn tick can reproduce without breeding. One female can create an infestation.

“This tick can breed in tremendous numbers within a pasture or on an animal,” McDermott said.

“We’ve actually had livestock mortality from just overwhelming numbers of ticks feeding on cattle,” McDermott said, as he talked about an example in Monroe County where two cows and a bull died.

So what do we do about it?

Wear long sleeves and pants, and tuck everything in. Wear light colored clothing. And, more often than in the past, perhaps, check yourself and your animals for ticks.