Tick-borne disease surveillance: Annual reports: Vector-borne disease surveillance in Canada
Vectors, such as ticks, spread diseases between humans or from animals to humans, usually by biting. Diseases spread by vectors are called vector-borne diseases. Find out how we monitor tick-borne diseases in Canada.
- Last updated: 2026-07-27
This page summarizes the latest annual data available regarding tick-borne disease cases reported in Canada. We update this page annually, with data covering the previous year. It was last updated on January 16, 2026 with data between January 1, 2024 and December 31, 2024.
To view data regarding Lyme disease or Anaplasmosis from previous years, please see the Explore the data tab.
For more details on tick-borne disease surveillance, please refer to our webpage on tick-borne diseases.
Key highlights from 2024
Cases
5,809 cases
50%
confirmed
50%
probable
5,809 cases were reported in 2024, representing annual growth of over 20%.
Geographic distribution
96% of cases1 were reported by Ontario, Nova Scotia and Quebec.
About 3% were likely acquired during travel outside of Canada.
Demographic characteristics
56%
males
44%
females
7%
aged 5-9 years
23%
aged 60-69 years
More cases were reported among males than females, and in those aged 5-9 or 60-69 than in other age groups.
Seasonality
About 67% of cases with known symptom onset dates that were locally acquired were reported in summer months, between June and August2.
Cases
3 cases
67%
confirmed
33%
probable
3 cases were reported in 2024.
Geographic distribution
Demographic characteristics
Seasonality
Human cases overview
- Overall, the national case count of Lyme disease has been trending upward since 2009 3.
- The incidence rate of Lyme disease in Canada in 2024 was 14.1 compared to 11.9 per 100,000 population in 20234.
- Reasons for the high number of cases include greater human exposure to risk areas as tick habitat range expands with climate change.
Demographic characteristics
- Like previous years, cases were reported more commonly among males (56%) compared to females (44%) 5.
- A larger proportion of cases were reported among those aged 5-9 (7%) and 60-69 (23%) years than in other age groups.
- This may reflect behaviors associated with these age groups that increase risk of tick exposure, such as time spent outdoors, or less awareness of risk and preventive measures.
Seasonality
- Most cases reported a symptom onset during the summer months of June (28%), July (26%), and August (13%).
- This is similar to findings from previous years, reflecting heightened tick activity and greater outdoor human activity in the summer months.
- Summer activities associated with risk of tick bites include gardening and camping. Additional information about tick bite prevention is available.
Seasonality data table
| Episode month | Number of cases2 |
|---|---|
| January | 14 |
| February | 15 |
| March | 17 |
| April | 31 |
| May | 141 |
| June | 439 |
| July | 409 |
| August | 203 |
| September | 119 |
| October | 103 |
| November | 53 |
| December | 28 |
Geographic distribution
- Most cases were reported in Ontario (41%), Nova Scotia (40%), and Quebec (14%), consistent with previous years.
- Additional information about Lyme disease risk areas in Canada is available.
- Nova Scotia was the province with the highest incidence (217 per 100,000 population).
- More cases were reported than in the previous year in Ontario (+27%) and Quebec (+27%).
Geographic distribution data table
| Geography | Number of cases1 |
|---|---|
| Canada | 5,809 |
| Yukon | 0 |
| British Columbia | 21 |
| Northwest Territories | 0 |
| Alberta | 31 |
| Saskatchewan | 2 |
| Manitoba | 84 |
| Ontario | 2,369 |
| Quebec | 834 |
| Nunavut | 0 |
| New Brunswick | 111 |
| Nova Scotia | 2,350 |
| Prince Edward Island | 4 |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 3 |
Human cases overview
- Almost double the cases of Lyme disease were reported in 2023 (n=4,785) than in 2022 (n=2,525).
- Overall, the national case count of Lyme disease has been trending upward since 2009 6.
- The incidence rate of Lyme disease in Canada in 2023 was 11.9 per 100,000 population. This is about double the incidence reported in 2022 (6.5 per 100,000 population) 7.
- This is partly due to a change in Nova Scotia’s provincial case definition in 2023 1. This year, more than six times the cases were reported from Nova Scotia (n=2,057) than in the previous year (n=326).
- Other reasons for the higher number of cases include greater human exposure to risk areas as tick habitat range expands with climate change.
Demographic characteristics
- Like previous years, cases were reported more commonly among males (57%) compared to females (43%) 8.
- A larger proportion of cases were reported among those aged 5-14 (9%) and 60-79 (37%) years than in other age groups.
- This may reflect behaviors associated with these age groups that increase risk of tick exposure, such as time spent outdoors, or less awareness of risk and preventive measures.
Seasonality
- Most cases reported an illness onset during the summer months of June (19%), July (40%), and August (16%).
- This is similar to findings from previous years, reflecting heightened tick activity and greater outdoor human activity in the Summer months.
- Summer activities associated with risk of tick bites include gardening and camping. Additional information about tick bite prevention is available.
Seasonality data table
| Episode month1 | Number of cases |
|---|---|
| January | 19 |
| February | 16 |
| March | 26 |
| April | 37 |
| May | 114 |
| June | 379 |
| July | 867 |
| August | 352 |
| September | 151 |
| October | 95 |
| November | 58 |
| December | 21 |
Geographic distribution
- Most cases were reported in Nova Scotia (43%), Ontario (39%) and Quebec (14%), consistent with previous years.
- Most cases in Ontario and Quebec occurred in the south-eastern and southern regions, respectively. Additional information about Lyme disease risk areas in Canada is available.
- Nova Scotia was the province with the highest incidence (194.7 per 100,000 population).
- More cases were reported than in the previous year in Manitoba (+53%) and New Brunswick (+71%).
Geographic distribution data table
| Geography | Number of cases |
|---|---|
| Canada | 4,785 |
| Yukon | 0 |
| British Columbia | 28 |
| Northwest Territories | 0 |
| Alberta | 20 |
| Saskatchewan | 3 |
| Manitoba | 58 |
| Ontario | 1,859 |
| Quebec | 652 |
| Nunavut | 0 |
| New Brunswick | 101 |
| Nova Scotia | 2,057 |
| Prince Edward Island | 5 |
| Newfoundland and Labrador | 2 |
Human cases overview
- This is the first year the Agency is collecting data regarding anaplasmosis from provinces and territories. Anaplasmosis was made nationally notifiable in January 2024.
- Information about signs and symptoms is available.
- The incidence rate of anaplasmosis in Canada in 2024 was 1.63 per 100,000 population3.
Demographic characteristics
- Like other tick-borne diseases, cases were reported more commonly among males (61%) compared to females (39%)1.
- A larger proportion of cases were reported among those 60-79 (55%) years than in other age groups1.
- This may reflect behaviors associated with these age groups that increase risk of tick exposure, such as time spent outdoors.
Seasonality
- Most cases reported a symptom onset during the summer months of June (26%) and July (20%)2.
- This is similar to findings from other tick-borne diseases, reflecting heightened tick activity and greater outdoor human activity in the summer months.
- Summer activities associated with the risk of tick bites include gardening and camping. Additional information about tick bite prevention is available.
Geographic distribution
- 93% of cases were reported from Nova Scotia (69%) and Ontario (24%).
- Nova Scotia was the province with the highest incidence (43.04 per 100,000 population)3.
Human cases overview
- This is the first year the Agency is collecting data regarding babesiosis from provinces and territories. Babesiosis was made nationally notifiable in January 2024.
- Information about signs and symptoms is available.
- The incidence rate of babesiosis in Canada in 2024 was 0.02 per 100,000 population1.
Demographic characteristics
- All cases with reported age and sex information were among those aged 55-79 and included both males (3) and females (3).
Seasonality
- Three cases with known symptom onset dates were reported in the warmer months of May, August and September.
- Summer activities associated with the risk of tick bites include gardening and camping. Additional information about tick bite prevention is available.
Geographic distribution
- Cases were distributed across a number of provinces, with the highest number reported by Ontario.
- Cases were reported by Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.
Human cases overview
- This is the first year the Agency is collecting data regarding Powassan virus disease from provinces and territories. Powassan virus disease was made nationally notifiable in January 2024.
- Information about signs and symptoms is available.
- The incidence rate of Powassan virus disease in Canada in 2024 was 0.007 per 100,000 population1. Cases were reported by Quebec and Ontario.
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