Ticks are spreading, and down in the article, you guessed it, the cause is speculated to be global warming aka climate change.
From CBS in Charlotte, worry over a one year increase. Excerpts:
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. (AP) — In the trees and grasses of the South, there are a growing number of unwanted visitors that at best are an itchy nuisance and at worst can carry debilitating diseases: Ticks.
Public health officials say that numbers of reported cases of diseases like Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain spotted fever are not yet alarming and have not yet shown a definitive trend upward from a national perspective.
…
“Ticks are spreading, but usually not like wildfire,” said Joseph Piseman, chief of tickborne disease activity for the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “The spread is kind of slow but sure.”
…
The Lone Star tick carries a flu-like infection, and Apperson said the main reason for its emergence in the region is a larger population of deer for it to feed upon. Scientists aren’t so sure about why other species are invading, however.
…
For the most part, scientists are not yet examining why the populations have been spreading, said entomologist Bruce A. Harrison, who studied ticks for the state of North Carolina for nearly 20 years. He hypothesized it may be at least in part caused by climate change. As temperatures change, animals that are food for ticks migrate — often because the plants they eat are now growing elsewhere.
…
While the CDC hasn’t reported a spike in tick-borne diseases, officials in North Carolina have noticed an increase this year compared to a year earlier. Rocky Mountain spotted fever cases are up 50 percent this year, said state public health veterinarian Carl Williams. And while there typically wasn’t a single positive Lyme disease test 10 years ago, now there are a few each year, Mekeel said.
Full story: http://charlotte.cbslocal.com/2012/05/28/new-species-of-ticks-spreading-disease-across-southeast/
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Like with tornadoes, we now have doppler radar, and storm chasers and live reporting, now that we have a national database for Lyme disease and constant reminders in the news, is it any wonder there is an increase in cases?
Story submitted by WUWT reader George Ellis
I’ve lived in areas with plenty of hunting, now and in the past, and the tick problem seems to be increasing somewhat, but like I said, we’ve always had problems with them. First person I knew with Lymes was almost 30 years ago. Other problems is that it is hard to diagnose (I’ve been tested three times with no definitive negative) and the medical community still refuses to acknowledge how serious the long term affects are in some people.
As noted, far more people do seem to be venturing into the deep woods rather than having a picnic in the well groomed areas of a state park like our parents and grand parents.
Besides birds, ticks do have other natural predators such as pine snakes. I’ve heard of pine snakes with hundreds of ticks in them. Perhaps small changes in such efficient predators can drastically affect local tick populations.
Sure a lot of tick-talk today. Terrifyin’!
No time to tarry.
Ta-ta!
New Hockey Ticks discovered in the Northern Hemisphere!
If the curve is up and to the right, it MUST be about climate change. How could it possibly be anything else?
Here’s something I’ve noticed; when I was a kid in Lowcountry SC, we had Spring, Summer, Football Season, Harvest Season, Fall, Christmas Season and Winter. 5o years later all of these seasons have been replaced with, Hurricane Season, Allergy Season, Flea and Tick season, and finally the “post-holiday blues season”. There is a definite effort by the media, probably unknowingly, to promote everything as a “worry about the__________ season”. My best advice is to toss the TV, subscribe to one good newspaper, the WSJ, and read WUWT.
I suspect that one causal factor in an increase in the number of ticks is an increase in host populations. Reduced hunting of deer combined with the very low populations of wild predators will cause increased herd sizes. Another factor could be increased browse for host populations. Land that has been historically cropland but has been permitted to revert to grassland or forest would support an increase in host-animal populations. No global climate changes required. A few years ago a South Carolinan remarked to me that deer were becoming the biggest driving hazard in the state. Within hours after hearing that I saw two deer-related accidents, anecdotal but still…
It is said that each animal has its predator….There must be one
which feasts on ticks…? All comments up to now only point to
forest fires and the Texan fire ant, which cleans out the pests…
Isn’t there a wonderful wasp, spider or tick devouring bird… to do
the job??
What does ticks and the collapse of an ancient civilization have in common?
http://news.yahoo.com/huge-ancient-civilization-collapse-explained-123449804.html
If you guessed Climate Change, then you would be correct.
This is purely anecdotal… when I was growing up wild and running free through the tall grass prairie and woodlands of my native home in Osage County, OK, we would occasionally pick up a tick and my father told me that until the local ranchers had begun importing cattle from Mexico and the Southern states of Alabama, etc. some years before, that there had been no ticks at all in the area and he and his brothers and friends never were troubled with ticks.
Now, one is wise to check for ticks after every foray into the wild.
By the way, turkeys and Guinea fowl are tough on ticks. If your place is overrun with the bothersome critters, get some young pre- adult Guineas and let ’em grow a bit and become acclimated and realize where their home is and then let them roam free and you’ll soon be tick free.
Re: Dengue and Chagas, etc., I am constantly amazed than any human manages to survive in the tropics. Reading “1493” about the aftermath of Columbus and all the various Columbian Exchanges, and boy did the Europeans get a rude awakening in Central and South America. Best estiamtes are that 80% of the Europeans that made it the New World in the 15-17th Century snuffed it within a year from disease or indian. Mostly disease, especially malaria and yellow fever. The #1 reason for the establishment of the slave trade was that Africans that reach adulthood are almost all immune to malaria (and the indans made poor slaves due to their penchant for murdering their masters). Anyway, this and its sister book 1491 had all kinds of interesting theories regarding pathogens and genetics and the interation between two totally isolated populations.
Interesting. I live in the same area and have for two decades. I’ve seen ticks here every year, both dog ticks and deer ticks are common. They’ve been common every place I’ve been in Virginia during that time. Perhaps your activities have changed? When I was active in the local Boy Scouts, we insisted that the Scouts check frequently for ticks on every outing since ticks are far easier to remove before they insert their feeding parts.
Our winter was on the mild side this past year, so more ticks survived (and perhaps fluorished). But that is a minor change in tick life. Either a chemical warfare campaign against bugs was normally active in your area or the deer population has changed it’s pattern. Deer change their patterns based on food, cover and human activities, like building anything. I rarely spray for bugs on my property (ditto for my neighbors); and I have bluebirds and goldfinches nesting here because I leave them the bugs. You’ll rarely see bluebirds where lawns are regularly sprayed for weeds and bugs.
The immature forms of ticks overwinter on the local rodent populations, like field mice. One area tried controlling their tick infectious disease incidence rate by spreading cotton balls impregnated with insecticide (DDT back then) throughout the local fields and wooded areas. The cotton balls were harvested by the mice for use as nesting material. Ticks virtually vanished for several years. That practise got stopped because the locals were concerned that their foxes were getting poisoned by eating DDT coated mice (probable).
Ticks were severely diminished in the East Coast because the deer population was almost eliminated by the early 1900’s (habitat destruction, hunting for meat and market gunners). In the early 1930’s hunters volunteered the idea of a hunting license with part of the fees going to wildlife and habitat restoration. (Currently license fees and excise taxes on firearms and ammunition contribute $4.7million dollars a day to wildlife restoration in the United States) One of the first animals to benefit was the whitetail deer, which is a primary host for ticks looking for enough blood to reproduce. While there are different kinds of ticks, I doubt most folks are able to identify ticks by size alone. Ticks grow from tiny eggs to full size adult and can be any size between. http://www.ct.gov/caes/lib/caes/documents/publications/bulletins/b1010.pdf.
Try not to get focused on “what kind of tick it is”, and stay focused on safe tick activity (like not only checking for ticks on yourself, but also sharing that responsibility. It’s the best way to insure your back isn’t host to a host of ticks). If you treat you pet (dog or cat) with flea/tick treatments or collars, expect ticks to ride the pets into the house. After the ticks figure that they don’t like the pet’s blood, they’ll go looking for a substitute blood source like people.
One sure fire cure for ticks and many other insects are some guinea fowl. Guineas love ticks and will clear an incredible amount of territory of any ticks. I had ducks one year and they diid a number on the ticks too, but the ducks made that year almost Japanese beetle free. Chickens do fairly good on ticks too, but their not as independent as guineas.
Reading through this thread and seeing the theme of reforestation and population explosions of wild beasts, I cannot help but think, this is our 4th Century. And here comes the 5th.
Joachim Seifert says:
May 29, 2012 at 11:08 am
It is said that each animal has its predator….There must be one which feasts on ticks…? All comments up to now only point to forest fires and the Texan fire ant, which cleans out the pests…
Isn’t there a wonderful wasp, spider or tick devouring bird… to do the job??
Pheasants love ticks, and they’re big enough to make a sizeable dent in the population. But between the builders buying up farmland to plant condos on them and the increase in the numbers of cars on what were formerly rural roads, the pheasant population in the Northeast Corridor has been pretty reduced.
BTW, deer ticks spend the winter attached to field mice (voles), and the wind turbines are doing a pretty good job of reducing the numbers of their primary aerial predators…
Duster says:
May 29, 2012 at 10:56 am
“I suspect that one causal factor in an increase in the number of ticks is an increase in host populations. Reduced hunting of deer combined with the very low populations of wild predators will cause increased herd sizes. Another factor could be increased browse for host populations. Land that has been historically cropland but has been permitted to revert to grassland or forest would support an increase in host-animal populations. No global climate changes required. A few years ago a South Carolinan remarked to me that deer were becoming the biggest driving hazard in the state. Within hours after hearing that I saw two deer-related accidents, anecdotal but still…”
Duster,
You have hit on a couple of the trends that support increasing tick populations: Reversion of cultivated fields to native growth nationwide coupled with a lot higher populations of host species (deer, dogs, goats, horses, llamas, etc.) for ticks.
I would add a couple more to the list. Farmers used to plow their fields each year, turning most of the crop residue under the soil and disrupting the life cycle of many insects. If crop residue was heavy on the surface, it would often be burned off before tilling. In addition, farmers in many areas used to burn off their fence rows between the fields to reduce the encroachment of trees and brush into the fields and to kill off noxious weeds in the fence rows. They burned off their weedy pastures and even the litter and under brush in climax oak forests, to promote more grass growth and browse for dairy and beef cattle. The cattle were given access to ‘oilers’, a roller/cable mechanism mounted at about a 45 degree angle that dispensed insecticides as the cows used it for rubbing against. The cows catch on to rubbing on these things real quick, as they can maneuver in and around the cable/roller to rub most itchy areas and get insecticide on to the ticks that are making them itchy! Deer never seem to catch on to the trick though.
Modern farming has trended towards ‘low till’ and ‘no till’ planting and harvesting methods, leaving most of the crop residue (wheat straw, corn stalks, pea vines, etc) on top of the soil. After a winter of some decomposition, the next crop is planted directly into the soil without plowing the residue under. While this reduces the total energy consumed to grow a bushel of wheat or corn (plowing soil is energy intensive), it lets the crop residue build up on the soil surface. This provides much better cover for insects of all kinds, including ticks. In most areas, burning off crop residue is now illegal, so fire is no longer a sure way to kill insect eggs in the crop residue, the field fence rows, or the under story and forest floor of the oak wood lots.
More deer and other host species, marginal farmland reversion to natural cover, low/no till farming methods, no burning allowed for fields and fence rows; All of these things assure higher populations of ticks, unfortunately!
MtK
If ticks are a problem in your area the go buy some PERMETHRIN insect repellent for clothing and you – this stuff works spay on you cloths and no more problems – also tuck pants into socks.
To Curtis at 11:33 AM:
Curtis, you left all your winnings at the table!
You said that the cause of the disappearance of the first large civilizations, around 4,000 years go, was climate change. And yes, the climate did change. But why??
Here is your answer, from the article that you linked (hint, it is yellow, and warm, and rises once a day):
———————-
…”Initially, the monsoon-drenched rivers the researchers identified were prone to devastating floods. Over time, monsoons weakened, enabling agriculture and civilization to flourish along flood-fed riverbanks for nearly 2,000 years.
“The insolation — the solar energy received by the Earth from the sun — varies in cycles, which can impact monsoons,” Giosan said. “In the last 10,000 years, the Northern Hemisphere had the highest insolation from 7,000 to 5,000 years ago, and since then insolation there decreased. All climate on Earth is driven by the sun, and so the monsoons were affected by the lower insolation, decreasing in force. This meant less rain got into continental regions affected by monsoons over time.”
Eventually, these monsoon-based rivers held too little water and dried, making them unfavorable for civilization.
“The Harappans were an enterprising people taking advantage of a window of opportunity — a kind of “Goldilocks civilization,” Giosan said.
Eventually, over the course of centuries, Harappans apparently fled along an escape route to the east toward the Ganges basin, where monsoon rains remained reliable….
It is the lack of a natural predator to hunt the deer. I say natural because man can not do natures job with a riffle. Human hunters tend to shoot the large healthy animal that looks good on the wall. Wolf would go after the week. I thought this was basic eath science.
Dave Wendt sez
BTW if deer tick borne diseases are spreading a more reasonable explanation would probably be that natural resource and environmental bureaucracies have become dominated by enviros who developed their notions of nature by watching endless repeats of “Bambi” and they have made controlling populations of deer increasingly
Tell me about it. Several years ago Fairfax County VA supervisors decided to save money by defunding the program that hired professional hunters to cull the deer population. They gave free liscences to anyone who wanted to hunt them and they could keep the meat. Well, people had horses and livestock killed so THAT ended. And the deer population EXPLODED. As did the ticks. To the rescue: COYOTES. It was awhile before I could walk the dog without taking my weapon, but it solved the deer problem.
The two worst places for ticks I have ever visited was around Bratsk in central Siberia and in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, both areas where winter temperatures regularly go below -40.
By the way ticks have increased in Sweden too, in parallell with the growing deer population.
No more pheasants in PA, which is a shame, they wuz gud eatin’.
http://www.pennlive.com/newsflash/index.ssf/story/theres-an-uptick-in-tick-population/19d48ee941ee406aa4fd86da6f8ca8d3
Speak of the devil. Almost 3000 cases of Lymes Disease in PA in 2010.
For the most part, scientists are not yet examining why the populations have been spreading, said entomologist Bruce A. Harrison, who studied ticks for the state of North Carolina for nearly 20 years. He hypothesized it may be at least in part caused by climate change. As temperatures change, animals that are food for ticks migrate — often because the plants they eat are now growing elsewhere.
======================
I haven’t read the previous posts but I will weigh in on my observations with regards to ticks.
I, as well as my bird dogs, have been covered up with ticks in Dec, Jan, and Feb with the temps in the 20’s and 30’s with 10 inches of snow on the ground. When I say covered up, I mean 50 plus on each dog and a dozen on me. If I can’t get the dogs to a large flowing stream within an hour or so I will be pulling ticks off them before they get under the fur.
They hibernate or collect in black mud / muck in spring seeps and around the edges of water holes and creeks where decaying organic matter accumulates. These ticks are small and often brown or light in color. I have experienced this problem dozens of times in the winter while hunting and the only unfrozen source of water were these seeps and edges of water holes. An active bird dog requires 1 quart of water per hour so they will find the water holes. Soft snow is the greatest gift of all along with a few grouse. I have learned to avoid the black mud and thus the ticks by carrying water with me (~ 8 lb/gal) gives me about 4 hours hunting time in temps below 40 F.
I don’t want to hear any BS with regards to any ‘public bureaucrats’ claiming global warming increases ticks. Cooling certainly has no effect. Entomologist Bruce A. Harrison needs to learn something about the effects of a fraction of a degree in temp change over a long period of time as well as face the fact the annual temp spread in NC is likely over 80 F. He should also learn more about ticks. Was 20 years not long enough?
I live in NE Oklahoma and I have NEVER seen the tick population as high as it is now. I spend a lot of time playing and working in the woods and ticks have always been a constant nuisance. It has gotten so bad that urban areas are now infested. Our local nature center (Tulsa) now warn hikers to stay on the trails and to do a thorough “tick check” when finished.
There are plenty of things you can do to prevent bites, Wear boots and jeans, tuck in your shirt and use DEET or Permethrin on your clothing and footwear. Also put a “collar” of DEET around your arms where your shirt sleeve ends and another around your neck. Trust me, DEET will repel ticks too. I also wear compression shorts instead of underwear when I’m out in the shiggy, it prevents ticks access to your “tender bits”.
One thing which bothers me is that the deer/duck/bird hunters
are described as the “good guys”, keeping deer/tick populations
down….The opposite is true: The hunters eliminated MOST of tick
eating birds in the wild! No birds….plenty of ticks— plain to see
and not: What
can we shoot now ? The deers/ticks of course !??
I have seen the hunters with all colorful birds hanging dead on their
belts, proudly displayed… As soon as there is some wiggle in the
bushes, these guys raise the guns and fire immediately: Seven
Italians per year are shot under maroni chestnut trees in early morning
fog for being mistaken for delicious wild boars….
This gun shooting craziness is for mental simpletons only, I know a real
deer hunter from MA, he uses bow and arrow, otherwise it would
be too easy. and primitive…
JS
End you comment with BS rather than JS. It would be more appropriate.
You are one of the gun wielding crowd….Question: why did your peers
deplete the woods from tick eating birds? I know: “A chicken in every pot…”
delicious, I know, but now we are swamped by the ticks which are the
food for the birds…Read further up: Comment Luther Wu: “Let some
birds freely roam and you will be tick free….
Instead of letting millions of birds out into the woods, you guys would
distribute guns to everyone….
…… The Italians do not only shoot boars… as soon as the migratory
birds fly South in flocks from Germany into Italy, tens of millions are
downed by YOU HUNTERS to end up as delicias on the menu…
No wonder, the ticks have their heyday…and instead of pinpointing
you …. its the global warming…..
JS
It’s never too early to be alarmed if there is the hope that Funding will follow the Alarm.