Deer ticks will normally complete their life cycles in 2 years. If hosts are scarce, the life cycle can extend to 4 years. Adult deer ticks will mate and feed in the winter. After mating, the male deer tick will die and the female will spend the winter on the host.
In the spring, the female will drop to the ground and lay her eggs, about 3,000 of them. The female deer tick will search for a place to lay her eggs that is moist and often leafy. Mulch or other similar areas are perfect for deer tick egg laying. After she lays her eggs, the female deer tick will die.
The eggs will hatch within several days, and the 6-legged larvae will search for food. The deer tick larvae stage usually occurs from June to September. Larvae will overwinter if they feed late in the year and molt into nymphs the following spring. Nymphs feed once from April to August, then molt into adults in the fall. They will then attach themselves to their host, usually a white-tailed deer.
Ticks will attach to hosts of different sizes throughout their life stages. White-footed mice and other small mammals are hosts for the first stage. The tick will attach itself to larger hosts as it grows. Eventually, as an adult, it will find deer to feed on.
Deer ticks must feed in these various stages or they will die, but they can last quite a long time between meals. Most deer ticks must feed within the first season of their life stage, but some can last through two seasons. Although they are the most prevalent during the months of April to September, deer ticks can be found year-round in various stages of their life cycles.