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What's the last thing you would want to happen during a press conference about the dangers of ticks?
No, not these types of ticks ✔.
Or the big blue hilarious superhero.
We are talking about the little bugs that are often the enemies of dogs and cats but can also give human's a nasty bite.
Well, with regards to our first question, you should probably guarantee that if a live contagious tick is present at a busy event, you should probably keep it safe.
That's exactly what didn't happen at the Miyazaki Prefectural Government office in Japan on 4 September.
The meeting had been called by the government with intention of warning the public about SFTS (severe fever with thrimbocytopenia syndrome), which ixodid ticks can transmit.
An unexpectedly high number of SFTS cases have been recorded in the Miyazaki region of south Japan this year, the most since 2013.
With Autumn now upon us, reporters were instructed how to deal with tick bites and how to avoid them altogether.
A live tick was presented to the media on a piece of paper, alongside another tick that had died after sucking blood.
However, after a few photos the tiny insect had sprung from it's less-than-air-tight platform and was free to roam around the room.
Cue pandemonium.
Everyone in attendance then began searching for the little mite but their efforts proved unsuccessful.
As a final measure, officials released two types of insecticide into the room and exterminated the pest for good.
What a farce.
The next day, Shuji Kov of the Miyazaki Government bashfully declared:
We should have taken better safety precautions.
You don't say!
HT The Mainichi
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