Surge of ticks in US Northeast sets off health concerns
They're dragging cloth through the terrain to collect the critters and hey're finding more arachnids than usual.
Dr. Tom Daniels is the director of Fordham University's Louis Calder Center.
'It's been a really hot year for ticks. We're seeing numbers that are generally about 30 to 40% higher than we saw last year, for example.'
The bulk of the students findings are blacklegged ticks, responsible for spreading Lyme disease.
Other species included the American dog tick, which is linked to Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, and the invasive Asian longhorned tick.
'There's speculation, of course, that one of the reasons we're seeing more ticks, not just a number, but even a higher diversity, has to do with global warming. And that certainly is a factor. We're seeing ticks in areas that we hadn't seen them before. But the black legged tick numbers go up and down from one year to the next. And we don't always know why it is that that happens.'
Scientists also point to a soaring deer population and people moving to more wooded areas.
'The wildlife is here, the ticks are here, and now we're here. And that raises our risk.'
His lab also operates the Fordham Tick Index - tracking tick activity across the region.
This summer it's consistently showing high risk for tick bites in the tri-state area: the region around southern New York, Connecticut and northern New Jersey.
More tick bites means a greater risk for tick-borne illnesss like Lyme disease, which affects nearly half a million Americans annually, according to the CDC.
Dr. Bruce Faber is an infectious disease physician.
'Only about three or 4% of ticks carry Lyme. Nevertheless, there's so many ticks and so many tick bites in certain areas. If you go hiking in the woods in the Northeast right now and you don't do anything to protect yourself, it would not be unusual to see that individual come back with five or ten ticks all over their body.'
Experts are urging precautions like using tick repellents, wearing long sleeves and checking yourself and pets after activities outside.
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