With the increase of ticks this year in New York, here’s insight from Matt Frye, a entomologist at JP McHale Pest Management, Inc.
Tick and mosquito problems today are the result of very complex ecological interactions. Ticks are parasites of “edge species”, such as deer and mice that live in the ecotone between field and forest. Habitat fragmentation, or the conversion of forest to residential or commercial space has created an abundance of “edge”. This is why we see extremely high deer populations. Because we live near these created edges at property borders, our risk of being exposed to ticks is very high. Another reason for high tick populations is the large rodent population of 2011. A recent report from the Cary Institute in Millbrook, NY shows how complex the interactions can be between plants, rodents, ticks and humans.
One of the best ways to avoid Lyme disease is a daily tick check. New evidence suggests that ticks have to be attached for 24 hours or more before they transmit the bacteria that causes Lyme disease. Ticks should be removed with tweezers by pulling them out exactly the direction that they inserted into your skin. Ticks can be placed inside clear tape to immobilize them.
Homeowners can also help with mosquito reduction by eliminating standing water. Old tires, bird feeders, empty pots and other areas that accumulate water and promote the growth of algae are conducive to mosquitoes. In addition, local municipalities often survey for mosquitoes and implement control plans.
Warm weather means that ticks will be out early and spring and summer are on track to be a horrific season for lyme disease. Are you prepared?
The Wall Street Journal reports that The Center for Disease control (CDC ) is conducting the first study of its kind to determine whether spraying the yard for ticks can not only kill pests, but also reduce human disease. “Paul Mead, chief of epidemiology and surveillance activity at CDC’s bacterial-illness branch, says preliminary results from about 1,500 households indicate that a spray reduced the tick population by 60%.”
The Wall Street Journal Online has an interactive display that you can click on to learn how to prepare your yard for tick season. Some of the recommendations include:
Firewood piles and bird feeders should be kept away from your house.
Restrict the use of ground cover and plants that may attract deer.
Keep your grass mowed.
Keep your pets out of the woods.
Consider having targeted pesticides applied as a targeted treatment barrier.
JP McHale’s Pest Management Tick Protection Program can help protect your family and pets from diseases carrying ticks. Ticks are very small insects that feed on the blood of warm-blooded animals, including dogs, cats, mice, deer, and, of course, people. A tick will latch onto the skin, dig in its feeding apparatus, and then bite. When the tick is full, it swells in size. Then it drops off the host, only to repeat the cycle again later.
Lyme disease is caused by the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi and is transmitted to humans by the bite of infected blacklegged ticks. Steps to prevent Lyme disease include using insect repellent, removing ticks promptly, landscaping, and integrated pest management. The ticks that transmit Lyme disease can occasionally transmit other tick-borne diseases as well.
Applications are recommended based on statistics generated from the Center for Disease control studies that show reported cases of Lyme Disease. Statistically New York and Connecticut continue to be the areas with the most reported cases of Lyme Disease. Organic Treatments to reduce tick population are available upon request. As well as a free risk assessment for you property.
Please contact us if you are interested in our Tick Protection program.
Lyme disease is the most commonly reported vector-borne disease in the United States, with the majority of cases occurring in the Northeast. It has been three decades since the agent of the disease, the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi, and the ticks that vector it were identified. However, the number of Lyme disease cases have steadily increased.
In a new article appearing in the forthcoming issue of the Journal of Medical Entomology called “What Do We Need to Know About Disease Ecology to Prevent Lyme Disease in the Northeastern United States?” authors from Colorado State University and the Centers for Disease Control assess the potential reasons for the continued lack of success in prevention and control of Lyme disease in the northeastern United States, and they identify conceptual areas where additional knowledge could be used to improve Lyme disease prevention and control strategies.
Some of these areas include:
1) identifying critical host infestation rates required to maintain enzootic transmission of B. burgdorferi,
2) understanding how habitat diversity and forest fragmentation impacts acarological risk of exposure to B. burgdorferi and the ability of interventions to reduce risk,
3) quantifying the epidemiological outcomes of interventions focusing on ticks or vertebrate reservoirs, and
4) refining knowledge of how human behavior influences Lyme disease risk and identifying barriers to the adoption of personal protective measures and environmental tick management.
The article briefly summarizes existing prevention and control strategies and tools aimed at reducing human exposure to vector ticks and B. burgdorferi, and highlights conceptual areas where additional studies on the enzootic transmission cycle or the human-tick interface are needed to fill in the knowledge gaps preventing the development of novel, more effective Lyme disease prevention strategies and tools or the implementation of existing ones.
Because the likelihood of human exposure to the tick and the pathogen both can be influenced by human behavior, the authors focus not only on the density of infected ticks, which represents the fundamental (or acarological) risk of human exposure to B. burgdorferi, but they also provide an overview of studies that identify behavioral risk factors and explore areas where additional information in this field are needed.
Story Source: The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Entomological Society of America. Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.
The New York State Department of Health (NYSDOH) and local health departments continue to investigate the spread of Lyme disease throughout New York State. Lyme disease is a bacterial infection caused by the bite of an infected deer tick. Untreated, the disease can cause a number of health problems. Patients treated with antibiotics in the early stage of the infection usually recover rapidly and completely. Since Lyme disease first became reportable in 1986, over 95,000 cases have now been confirmed in New York State.
The NYSDOH and local health departments also investigate several other tick-borne diseases, including babesiosis, ehrlichiosis (both human granulocytic anaplasmosis and human monocytic ehrlichiosis) and Rocky Mountain spotted fever. These tick-borne diseases are most frequently found on Long Island and in the lower Hudson Valley region. The number of cases of these diseases is much smaller in comparison to the cases of Lyme disease but their numbers are also increasing.
The Wall Street Journal posted a blog a few days ago about tick-borne diseases. Most diseases spread by hard-backed ticks, including Lyme Disease, where you can see the tick latched on your skin sucking your blood. Researchers now are focusing on soft-backed ticks, which bite you in your sleep and then leave. When this happens patients will contract relapsing fever, where they will have reoccurring fevers. Scientists started to study this kind of disease back in 2002 and fortunately the disease usually dose not have fatal effects. Health officials suggest to spay your lawn with products to keep ticks away, and JP McHale can do just that! JP McHale is a Westchester pest control company that treats lawns for ticks. Contact us by phone 800-479-2284, email, live chat, twitter, or facebook for an inspection!
Here is a great article on the top 5 pests to watch out for in the summer. The article explains the behavior and how to prevent mosquitoes, tick, termites, carpenter bees and carpenter ants. If you have a problem with any summer pests, give us a call! JP McHale is a Westchester Pest Control company. We are licensed in pest extermination for your home and business and would love to help you with your problem! Contact us by phone 800-479-2284, email, live chat, twitter, or facebook with any questions or to hear about our services.
Today a local Rhode Island news paper published a story about how researchers from URI have noticed that there should be a decrease in ticks this year. They predict to see 20 to 25% less cases this year. That’s a pretty good number! A decrease in deer ticks means a decrease in Lymes Disease. A research lab at URI invests most of its time focusing on studying ticks. Scientists go around the state each year and focus on counting how many deer ticks they find state wide. Last year, since the summer was very moist, ticks lasted until August but scientists think the number of cases will decrease significantly. They still want people to be aware and take precautions so they will not get ticks. Wear long sleeved clothing when you are outside and repellent with 30% DEET. When you apply repellent, make sure you spray you sock and shoes. Researchers say you at 70% less likely to get bitten if you do so because tick crawl up your leg and then bit you. JP McHale is a Westchester pest control company that can conduct an inspection for your home or building to check for ticks and we have treatment for your lawn to prevent ticks. Simply contact us by phone 800-479-2284, email, live chat, facebook, or twitter.
A few days ago, an article was published on wtop.com explaining how the amount of tick cases is on the rise. The tick population is growing and there are more tick-borne diseases that are being introduced. Once a tick bites a human, it has to stay intact with the skin for 24 hours until it can transmit a disease. Whenever you come inside from being outside, make sure you check your whole body for unusual spots. If you do find a tick, make sure you remove the whole body and all of the legs. If the tick is far underneath the skin, go to the hospital as soon as you can to remove it. Once you remove the tick, put it in a small bag and keep it in the freeze for a few days so if the tick did transmit a disease, a doctor can identify the tick and treat it properly. The article points out some tips to prevent ticks including the following:
Avoiding tall grass
Avoid walking where your lawn meets the woods. Do not brush up against bushes because ticks could easily transfer from a tree or bush to a person
Use insect repellent that contains 30% DEET or .5% permethrin
Wear light colored clothes when outside so you can see if a tick is on you
Tuck you pants into your socks
Wear long sleeved pants and shirts
Cut your lawn often
Get rid of places where rodents like
If you have pets, ask your vet for tick control methods you can use
By following these tips you will stay healthy and tick free. If you are concerned about ticks in your lawn, JP McHale can help! Contact us by phone 800-479-2284, email, twitter, or facebook.
Today IOL published an article about a different approach that the stadium is going to use to keep pests out of the stadium. There has been a bad bat, rat, and pigeon problem in the stadium and instead of using poison, the stadium is going to try and get rid of the pests with “birds of prey”. Pigeons are a major problem and if they get rid of them, the other pests will subside. Pigeon droppings attract rats and the birds carry diseases andticks. They build nests around the stadium and lay eggs so more can reproduce. The brand new stadium holds 46,000 people so the stadium wants to ensure that all of the people are safe by getting rid of the pests. They think that by attracting bigger birds to scare away the pigeons, the pigeons won’t come back. Throughout the three years the plans to get rid of pests have changed, but the stadium feels this approach will be very effective. If you have a rat problem or any other pest problems, feel free to contact us by phone 800-479-2284, email, facebook, twitter, or live chat.
With the increase of ticks this year in New York, here’s insight from Matt Frye, a entomologist at JP McHale Pest Management, Inc.
