KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Missouri is seeing a rise in the number of tick-borne illnesses.

According to the Missouri Health Department, ticks are responsible for spreading more human diseases than any other bug, including Rocky Mountain spotted fever, ehrlichiosis, tularemia and Lyme disease.

Health officials said 117 cases of ehrlichiosis have been reported this year, 186 cases of Rocky Mountain spotted fever, 18 cases of tularemia and 35 cases of Lyme disease.

Symptoms are flu-like, including muscle aches, fever and headaches.

"And they toss it off to, 'I've got a bug.' They don't think, 'I've got a bug, I need to see a doctor and have a blood test done,'" said Barbara Dawson with the Clay County Health Department.

Ticks are found mostly in thick, grassy areas, and they've flourished in part because of the mild winter and a cooler, wetter spring..

"They may not be as prevalent now because of a heat wave, they back off," Dawson said.

She said it takes about four hours for an infected tick to transfer any disease it may be carrying, so check yourself often and use bug spray with DEET.