ST. LOUIS (AP) – Unseasonably warm weather is bringing out the bugs. University of Missouri researcher Wayne Bailey is citing an increasing number of mosquito and tick reports.

Temperatures in the 80s have been common throughout Missouri over the past two weeks, bringing June-like weather to March.

Bailey says the warm weather is making for hungry ticks and he urges people who venture to or near wooded areas to check themselves.

Bailey says one early-spring cold snap could still wipe out a big chunk of the mosquito population.