What is a tick? Ixodid ticks are tiny parasitic arachnids which depend on a blood meal to survive. They can carry and transmit infectious bacteria and parasites such as Borrelia burgdorferi causing Lyme disease, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Babesia, Rickettsia, and tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBE), among others. Can I test a tick? Testing the tick is the fastest way to determine your exposure to serious tick-borne diseases and, if symptoms develop, to support an early diagnosis and