scholarly journals Immature Ixodes scapularis (Acari: Ixodidae) Collected From Peromyscus leucopus (Rodentia: Cricetidae) and Peromyscus maniculatus (Rodentia: Cricetidae) Nests in Northern Wisconsin

2019 ◽  
Vol 57 (1) ◽  
pp. 304-307 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan T Larson ◽  
Xia Lee ◽  
Tela Zembsch ◽  
Gebbiena M Bron ◽  
Susan M Paskewitz
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Lyme Disease ◽  
Forest Floor ◽  
Ixodes Scapularis ◽  
Dermacentor Variabilis ◽  
Immature Stages ◽  
Eastern United States ◽  
Blacklegged Tick ◽  
Disease Vector ◽  
Blood Meals

Abstract The blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis Say, is the primary Lyme disease vector in the eastern United States. Both immature stages of I. scapularis take blood meals from mice belonging to the genus Peromyscus. Mice are active during the night and spend the majority of diel periods in nests. Thus, immature I. scapularis have a greater opportunity to drop from Peromyscus hosts while in nests compared with the forest floor. Here, we collected 11 Peromyscus nests during a 3-mo period during which the immature I. scapularis are known to be active. We then examined nesting materials for the presence of I. scapularis. Immature I. scapularis were detected in 64% of Peromyscus nests examined. Additionally, 55% of the nests contained at least one Dermacentor variabilis Say larva. Eighty-seven percent of all larval ticks found within nests were blood-fed. Because Peromyscus spp. are highly competent reservoirs of numerous tick-borne pathogens, the ticks that detach in their nests may be important for the maintenance of tick-borne diseases. However, further studies are needed to determine the fate of the I. scapularis that detach in Peromyscus nests.

scholarly journals Landscape determinants of density of blacklegged ticks, vectors of Lyme disease, at the northern edge of their distribution in Canada

2019 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Benoit Talbot ◽  
Andreea Slatculescu ◽  
Charles R. Thickstun ◽  
Jules K. Koffi ◽  
Patrick A. Leighton ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Lyme Disease ◽  
Ixodes Scapularis ◽  
Sensu Stricto ◽  
Forest Composition ◽  
Eastern United States ◽  
Tick Density ◽  
Blacklegged Tick ◽  
Forested Areas ◽  
Northern Edge ◽  
The Many

Abstract In eastern North America, including Canada, Lyme disease is caused by Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto and transmitted to humans by the blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis. The last decade has seen a growing incidence of Lyme disease in Canada, following the northward range expansion of I. scapularis tick populations from endemic areas in eastern United States. This may be attributable to movement of the many hosts that they parasitize, including songbirds, deer and small mammals. In this study, we wanted to test the effect of spatial, temporal and ecological variables, on blacklegged tick density and infection rates, near the northern limit of their distribution in Ontario and Quebec, Canada. We found an effect of both proportion of forested areas and distance to roads, on density of I. scapularis ticks and prevalence of infection by B. burgdorferi. We also found an effect of both sampling year and ordinal sampling data on prevalence of infection by B. burgdorferi. In six adjacent sites showing evidence of reproducing I. scapularis populations, we found that forest composition and structure influenced density of I. scapularis ticks. Our results suggest that blacklegged tick density and infection rate in Canada may be influenced by a variety of factors.

scholarly journals High Proportion of Unfed Larval Blacklegged Ticks, Ixodes scapularis (Acari: Ixodidae), Collected From Modified Nest Boxes for Mice

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
R T Larson ◽  
G M Bron ◽  
X Lee ◽  
S M Paskewitz
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammal ◽  
Ixodes Scapularis ◽  
Leading Edge ◽  
Dermacentor Variabilis ◽  
Wild Animal ◽  
Eastern United States ◽  
Blacklegged Tick ◽  
Nest Boxes ◽  
Primary Vector ◽  
Collection Methods

Abstract The blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis Say, is the primary vector of several tick-borne pathogens, including those causing Lyme disease and babesiosis, in the eastern United States and active collection methods for this species include dragging or wild animal sampling. Nest boxes targeting mice may be an alternative strategy for the surveillance and collection of immature I. scapularis feeding on these hosts and would be much safer for animals compared to small mammal trapping. We constructed double-walled insulated nest boxes (DWINs) with collection tubes mounted below the nesting chamber and deployed eleven in southern Wisconsin from June until September of 2020. The DWINs were occupied by Peromyscus spp. and birds (wren species, Troglodytidae family). We collected 192 ticks from collection tubes, all of which were identified as either I. scapularis (95%) or Dermacentor variabilis Say (Acari: Ixodidae) (5%). Only 12% (21/182) and 20% (2/10) of I. scapularis and D. variabilis were blood-fed, respectively. The high proportion of unfed ticks found in collection tubes may be due to grooming by hosts inside the nest boxes. Alternatively, immature ticks may have climbed trees and entered the DWIN seeking a host. Results suggest that nest boxes could be a tool for finding ticks in areas of low density or at the leading edge of invasion, when small mammal trapping or drag sampling is not feasible.

Modeling the Sensitivity of Blacklegged Ticks (Ixodes scapularis) to Temperature and Land Cover in the Northeastern United States

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jonathan M Winter ◽  
Trevor F Partridge ◽  
Dorothy Wallace ◽  
Jonathan W Chipman ◽  
Matthew P Ayres ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Lyme Disease ◽  
Land Cover ◽  
New Hampshire ◽  
Ixodes Scapularis ◽  
Compartment Model ◽  
The United States ◽  
Growth Stages ◽  
Eastern United States ◽  
Northeastern United States

Abstract The prevalence of Lyme disease and other tick-borne diseases is dramatically increasing across the United States. While the rapid rise in Lyme disease is clear, the causes of it are not. Modeling Ixodes scapularis Say (Acari: Ixodidae), the primary Lyme disease vector in the eastern United States, presents an opportunity to disentangle the drivers of increasing Lyme disease, including climate, land cover, and host populations. We improved upon a recently developed compartment model of ordinary differential equations that simulates I. scapularis growth, abundance, and infection with Borrelia burgdorferi (Spirochaetales: Spirochaetaceae) by adding land cover effects on host populations, refining the representation of growth stages, and evaluating output against observed data. We then applied this model to analyze the sensitivity of simulated I. scapularis dynamics across temperature and land cover in the northeastern United States. Specifically, we ran an ensemble of 232 simulations with temperature from Hanover, New Hampshire and Storrs, Connecticut, and land cover from Hanover and Cardigan in New Hampshire, and Windsor and Danielson in Connecticut. Consistent with observations, simulations of I. scapularis abundance are sensitive to temperature, with the warmer Storrs climate significantly increasing the number of questing I. scapularis at all growth stages. While there is some variation in modeled populations of I. scapularis infected with B. burgdorferi among land cover distributions, our analysis of I. scapularis response to land cover is limited by a lack of observations describing host populations, the proportion of hosts competent to serve as B. burgdorferi reservoirs, and I. scapularis abundance.

Do-It-Yourself Tick Control: Granular Gamma-Cyhalothrin Reduces Ixodes scapularis (Acari: Ixodidae) Nymphs in Residential Backyards

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gebbiena M Bron ◽  
Xia Lee ◽  
Susan M Paskewitz
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Lyme Disease ◽  
Ixodes Scapularis ◽  
Low Cost ◽  
The United States ◽  
Tick Control ◽  
Eastern United States ◽  
Individual Level ◽  
Nymphal Tick ◽  
Do It Yourself

Abstract Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne disease in the United States with hotspots in the Northeast and Midwest. Integrated vector control for mosquito-borne disease prevention is often organized at the community level, but tick control is primarily coordinated at the household and individual level. Management of the blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis (Say), the vector of the causative agent of Lyme disease in the Midwest and eastern United States in peridomestic environments may be critical as many tick encounters are reported to occur in the yard. Therefore, we assessed the effectiveness of a widely available and low-cost pesticide that targets common lawn pests and is labeled for use against ticks. In June 2019, we evaluated a granular form of gamma-cyhalothrin in a placebo-controlled residential backyard study (n = 90) in two communities in Wisconsin. The product applied by the research team reduced nymphal blacklegged ticks in plots established in the lawn part of the ecotone by 97% one week after application at both communities and by 89–97% three to four weeks postapplication. The proportion of homes with at least one nymphal tick postapplication was significantly lower at acaricide-treated homes and ranged from 4.2 to 29.2% compared with placebo homes where at least one nymphal tick was found at 50–81.5% of homes. These results support the efficacy of a low-cost do-it-yourself strategy for homeowners seeking to reduce blacklegged ticks in the yard.

scholarly journals The Density of the Lyme Disease Vector Ixodes scapularis (Blacklegged Tick) Differs between the Champlain Valley and Green Mountains, Vermont

2019 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 545 ◽  
Author(s):  
David Allen ◽  
Benjamin Borgmann-Winter ◽  
Laura Bashor ◽  
Jeremy Ward
Keyword(s):  
Lyme Disease ◽  
Ixodes Scapularis ◽  
Blacklegged Tick ◽  
Disease Vector ◽  
Green Mountains

scholarly journals Evidence for Geographic Variation in Life-Cycle Processes Affecting Phenology of the Lyme Disease Vector Ixodes scapularis (Acari: Ixodidae) in the United States

2018 ◽  
Vol 55 (6) ◽  
pp. 1386-1401 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicholas H Ogden ◽  
Genevieve Pang ◽  
Howard S Ginsberg ◽  
Graham J Hickling ◽  
Russell L Burke ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Life Cycle ◽  
Lyme Disease ◽  
Geographic Variation ◽  
Ixodes Scapularis ◽  
The United States ◽  
Disease Vector

scholarly journals Practical Guide to Trapping Peromyscus leucopus (Rodentia: Cricetidae) and Peromyscus maniculatus for Vector and Vector-Borne Pathogen Surveillance and Ecology

2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Erika T Machtinger ◽  
Scott C Williams
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Lyme Disease ◽  
Small Mammals ◽  
Ixodes Scapularis ◽  
The United States ◽  
Eastern United States ◽  
Ixodes Pacificus ◽  
Tick Borne Disease ◽  
Vector Borne ◽  
Pathogen Surveillance

Abstract Arthropods pests are most frequently associated with both plants and vertebrate animals. Ticks, in particular the blacklegged ticks Ixodes scapularis Say and Ixodes pacificus Cooley & Kohls (Acari: Ixodidae), are associated with wildlife hosts and are the primary vectors of Lyme disease, the most frequently reported vector-borne disease in the United States. Immature blacklegged ticks in the eastern United States frequently use small mammals from the genus Peromyscus as hosts. These mice are competent reservoirs for Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, as well as other tick-borne pathogens. To conduct surveillance on immature ticks and pathogen circulation in hosts, capture and handling of these small mammals is required. While protocols for rearing and pest surveillance on plants are common, there are very few protocols aimed at entomologists to conduct research on vertebrate–arthropod relationships. The goal of this manuscript is to provide a practical template for trapping Peromyscus spp. for vector and vector-borne pathogen surveillance and ecology for professionals that may not have a background in wildlife research. Important considerations are highlighted when targeting P. leucopus Rafinesque and P. maniculatus Wagner. Specifically, for tick and tick-borne disease-related projects, materials that may be required are suggested and references and other resources for researchers beginning a trapping study are provided.

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