[tamimio]

I got bitten by a mosquito in Ottawa a couple years ago that sent me to the hospital.. I stopped near the river while cycling to see a raccoon for few seconds, was more than enough for that lil sucker to do the job.

[winxton]

I got bitten by a tick at a cottage near Ottawa and got a fever then bell's palsy a month later. I didn't even notice I got bit at all at the time. A year later, I went to the hospital for a swollen knee and had surgery done, and ended up being tested positive for lyme disease. The doc says you're too young to have bell's palsy and arthritis. Careful out there!

[tamimio]

That sounds awful. I hope you are doing better now!

[j_bum]

Thanks for sharing. Were you able to resolve the Lyme?

[pfdietz]

There are some potentially very nasty diseases spread by ticks and insects. For example, flaviviruses like West Nile, Dengue, and Powassan (which debilitated and ultimately killed the wife of Canadian fantasy author Charles de Lint.)

[BigTTYGothGF]

Arthropods of all (most) sorts: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arbovirus

[mr_toad]

Not to mention Malaria, which kills over half a million people a year.

[intrasight]

And has killed a large fraction of all humans who have ever lived.

[OutOfHere]

It has, but it also has saved a lot of people by slowing down invasions.