Tick Talk November 2024
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How are New England Farmers Dealing with Ticks?
In recent years, ticks have become a significant concern for farmers, particularly in Vermont, due to the rise of tick-borne illnesses like Lyme disease. A survey conducted by University of Vermont entomologist Cheryl Frank Sullivan found that 90% of northern New England farmers had encountered ticks on their clothing or bodies, highlighting their vulnerability to these pests. Given their exposure to fields and wooded areas, farmers are especially at risk. "The possibility of getting Lyme disease is one of the biggest fears I have in working in the woods," said Mike Farrell, co-founder of Forest Farmers, a company that provides workers with permethrin-treated clothing to help mitigate the risk.
Researchers are exploring various solutions to address tick-borne diseases in agricultural settings. Amanda Roome, a researcher from the Northeast Center for Occupational Health and Safety, is studying Vermont farms to test the efficacy of tick-control tubes. These tubes, which contain permethrin-treated cotton, are placed near areas where mice—key carriers of ticks—nest, offering a potentially effective way to kill ticks. Roome’s study, currently involving 46 farms, aims to determine whether tick populations can be significantly reduced using this method. "Given the rate of Lyme and other tick-borne illnesses in Vermont, we thought it was the perfect opportunity," Roome said, hoping the study will provide promising results.
Farmers are adopting various strategies to manage ticks on their properties. In addition to using permethrin-treated clothing, many perform daily tick checks, avoid brushy areas, and even use unconventional methods like incorporating flea collars in their boots. Some, like Kelly Otty of Fern Bridge Farm, believe that chickens help control tick populations, despite a lack of scientific evidence. "We noticed a pretty remarkable decrease in ticks after that," Otty shared, referring to the introduction of chickens on her farm. Although more research is needed to understand the full extent of tick control on farms, these efforts are crucial as farmers continue to face the threat of tick-borne diseases.
Tick-borne illness dubbed "American Malaria"
Ticks carry a variety of dangerous pathogens, including Lyme disease, Powassan virus, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, and babesiosis, which is raising particular concern due to its rapid spread and its severe clinical profile. Known as "American malaria" because of its similarities to malaria, babesiosis is caused by a parasite that infects red blood cells, leading to symptoms such as fever, chills, nausea, anemia, and respiratory distress. A new study published in Open Forum Infectious Diseases highlights the alarming rise of babesiosis cases in the U.S. from 2015 to 2022, with cases increasing by an average of 9% per year. The primary vector, the black-legged tick, is expanding its range due to warming temperatures, especially in the Northeast. "In Maine, cases of babesiosis grew by 1,422% from 2011 to 2019, and in Vermont by 1,602%," according to the researchers.
The rising prevalence of babesiosis is partly due to climate change, which has extended the tick’s geographical range by affecting temperature, humidity, and other environmental factors. The spread of babesiosis is compounded by the fact that ticks often carry multiple pathogens. The study found that 42% of people with babesiosis were co-infected with other tick-borne diseases, most commonly Lyme disease. Dr. Paddy Ssentongo, the study's lead author, highlighted the significance of these findings, stating, “These findings suggest that clinicians should have a heightened vigilance of co-infection of other tick-borne illness among patients admitted with babesiosis.”
Ultimately, prevention remains the most effective strategy for dealing with tick-borne diseases. Ssentongo advises those in endemic areas to take precautions, such as wearing long-sleeved clothing, using tick repellents, and conducting thorough tick checks after spending time outdoors. These findings will be presented at IDWeek, the Infectious Disease Society of America's annual conference.
State-wide Efforts for Tick Research in Maine
Maine is on track for another record-breaking year of Lyme disease cases, with 2,544 cases already reported in 2024, approaching the 2023 state record of 2,943 cases. Researchers at the University of Maine Tick Lab are intensifying efforts to track tick migration across the state and understand the environmental conditions that allow disease-carrying ticks to thrive.
Students from the University of Maine, including Sarah Manning, Madison Gordon, and Alyssa Marini, have been collecting ticks from residential properties in Waldo, Penobscot, and Hancock counties. These wooded lots have proven to be hotspots, with some properties yielding up to 50 deer ticks, many of which carried the Lyme-causing pathogen, Borrelia burgdorferi. The students' work aims to help homeowners take precautions and better understand the risks associated with ticks on their properties.
The rise in small mammal populations, such as field mice and squirrels, is contributing to the increase in tick-borne illnesses. Griffin Dill, an integrated pest management specialist at the University of Maine Tick Lab, explained that these animals act as hosts for ticks and can harbor high levels of infections like Lyme disease. "If we have many of those on the landscape, they can harbor high levels of these infections and transmit them back and forth to the ticks," Dill noted.
To monitor tick activity, the University of Maine has set up 15 sites across the state to gather data on tick populations, soil and weather conditions, and wildlife interactions. This research is critical for understanding how ticks and the diseases they carry are spreading into new areas of Maine. For the students involved, the work highlights the importance of personal protection. "The biggest thing is checking for ticks afterward," Manning emphasized, underscoring the need for protective clothing and EPA-approved repellents in the fight against tick-borne illnesses.
In Cape Elizabeth, Maine, researchers are intensifying efforts to understand the spread of Powassan virus, a deadly tick-borne illness that can kill one in ten people. Unlike Lyme disease, which requires a tick to be attached for 24 to 48 hours to transmit bacteria, Powassan can be transmitted in as little as 15 minutes. "Powassan lives in the salivary glands of the tick that you may get on you in the fall—they can transmit within 15 minutes of an attachment," warned Rebecca Robich, a research scientist at the Maine Health Institute of Research. The Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention has already reported three cases of Powassan this year, including the death of an 81-year-old man from York County.
Researchers in Maine, led by Robich, are investigating which animals are responsible for spreading the virus. Initially, scientists believed white-footed mice, the primary carriers of Lyme disease bacteria, were also spreading Powassan, but that hasn’t been proven. "We can't find the Powassan virus in white-footed mice... we are looking at other animals," Robich explained. The team is now focusing on small species like shrews and voles. Field biologist Molly Meagher and research assistant Curtis Bartiromo are collecting these animals from traps, examining them for ticks and taking tissue samples to test for the virus. In addition to examining animals, researchers are studying areas with native and invasive plants, like the Japanese barberry, which creates ideal habitats for small animals and ticks. "It's a great habitat for small animals. They are protected... ticks love it," Robich noted, suggesting that ticks in these environments may have a higher likelihood of carrying Powassan.
Though Powassan is not as prevalent as Lyme disease, its increasing presence in Maine and its severe neurological consequences make it a growing concern. The research team's findings, expected in the next six months, aim to help Mainers better protect themselves and their pets from this dangerous virus.
Tick Tubes
As tick-borne diseases like Lyme disease continue to spread across the U.S., finding reliable methods to manage ticks has become more urgent. One promising tool is the tick-control tube, a device that provides mice with acaricide-laced nesting material to reduce tick populations. While past studies have shown only moderate success, a recent study led by Erika T. Machtinger, Ph.D., of Penn State University offers fresh insights into the effectiveness of these tubes. “Tick tubes are one of the few [tools] that homeowners can feel empowered to use,” says Machtinger, noting that previous studies yielded "lukewarm" results because of inconsistent deployment and a lack of consideration for local ecology.
Machtinger’s team set out to refine the deployment strategy for tick tubes, focusing on factors such as timing, frequency of replacement, and placement. Their study found that consistent deployment from early spring through the fall, with monthly replacement of the cotton inside the tubes, significantly reduced tick abundance. “We’ve sometimes seen tubes emptied in less than two weeks,” Machtinger observes, highlighting the need for frequent cotton replacement to match peak mouse activity, which typically occurs in September and October.
One surprising aspect of the study was the consistency of the results. “Every season we put tubes out, there was a significant difference in tick numbers for rodent hosts in the next trapping round each time,” Machtinger says.