Even among people that love animals, ticks are a pretty universally-hated creature. These little arachnids are near the top of most people’s lists of creepy-crawlies that they don’t want to be anywhere near. They’re among the most disliked of all animals in Georgia. These parasites live off the blood of mammals (including humans), birds, and even reptiles. Though undeniably disgusting, they’re also pretty fascinating. Surprisingly enough, we actually have the world’s largest collection of ticks in Georgia. Georgia Southern University in Statesboro is the permanent home of this collection that absolutely dwarfs every other curated collection of ticks on the planet. Pretty weird, huh?

Georgia Southern University is one of the Peach State’s top colleges. With over 26,000 students and campuses in several cities, including Statesboro and Savannah, this popular school is growing with each year. It’s home to many researchers working in a variety of subjects

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It’s also home to the U.S. National Tick Collection. The collection houses over a million specimens of nearly all the 860 known tick species.

Georgia Southern University

While the thought of all those ticks might be making your skin crawl, know that they serve a vital scientific purpose. Public health officials study ticks to help treat tick-borne illnesses in both humans and animals.

USNTC (Tick) Collection

The collection actually belongs to the Smithsonian Institution, but has called Georgia Southern home since 1990.

USNTC (Tick) Collection

The majority of the collection is open to the public by appointment only, but you can find a selection of specimens on permanent exhibit on the lowest floor of the Math/Physics building at the Statesboro campus.

Georgia Southern University

You probably don’t want to see these creepy-crawlies out and about in your daily life, but it’s pretty neat to see them dead and stored in a scientific setting!

USNTC (Tick) Collection

For more information about the U.S. National Tick Collection, check out the Georgia Southern University website.

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Georgia Southern University

USNTC (Tick) Collection

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Address: Georgia Southern University, 1332 Southern Dr, Statesboro, GA 30458, USA