MILWAUKEE — A very small pest can cause some big-time health issues for Wisconsinites and their pets this time of year, as tick sightings and bites appear to be surging across the Badger State.

“We’re moving into the more dangerous time of the year,” said Michael Hillstrom with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources’ forest health team. “A lot of nymphal ticks are out — those are the ones, along with your deer ticks or blacklegged ticks — that can be the size of a poppyseed, so they’re really easy to miss.”

“It’s very bad and has only been getting worse,” the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Susanna Visser told the Associated Press.

While Wisconsin is far from the only state dealing with various tick issues right now, Hillstrom said some simple preventative steps can help one to avoid some potentially serious issues later.

“Wear long pants, wear a long-sleeved shirt,” Hillstrom said. “Wear something that’s lighter colored so it can be easier to see those ticks if they do start crawling on you.”

Watch the full interview above.