A brown dog tick.
When a tick engorges itself with blood, the sac it uses to hold the blood stretches and usually takes on a silvery, whitish appearance; in such a case, it can be described as a white label. It is the congestion that makes the tick look white, which means that a white tick is not really a different type of tick. The tick sac is usually brown or black, but congestion of the sac causes the color to change in appearance.
Deer ticks are known to spread Lyme disease.
When a person sees a white tick, they may assume that they have seen a different species of tick. This is due to the fact that most people are used to seeing brown or black ticks. However, a white tick is no different from its brown or black counterparts; it is so full of blood that its sac has been stretched too far. Excessive stretching of the bursa causes it to appear white, especially grayish or silvery white, instead of its usual brown or black coloration. This change in appearance often occurs with a common tick called a deer tick.
When a tick’s body fills with blood, it may look white.
People who spend time in wooded or grassy areas often take steps to avoid ticks, as they behave as external parasites and feed on the blood of humans and animals. Typically, a tick attaches to a human host inconspicuously, feeding on the host’s blood, sometimes for days. If a tick can remain undiscovered, it may remain in place and feed on its host for a few days. Eventually, the tick’s sac swells so much that a person viewing it might describe it as white. Interestingly, it is usually at this point that the tick loosens its grip on the host and stops feeding.
Garlic can be used to prevent tick bites.
After a tick swells, it will usually leave its host. In some cases, the tick can go into a state of hibernation where it does not feed for a long period of time. In fact, some ticks can live for months or even years before feeding again.
White ticks, like those that have a normal black or brown appearance, are generally considered pests. This is partly because they spread disease. For example, the deer tick is known to spread a serious infection called Lyme disease. However, some ticks can spread more than one type of disease.