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Integrated Pest Management for the The Deer Tick A complete integrated management program for the deer tick
should take a multifaceted approach This includes
surveillance (the detection of tick infestations); identification and
reduction of tick habitat; personal protection using light-colored
clothing, checking frequently for ticks, and using repellents; behavioral
considerations such as avoiding tick-infested areas, removing leaf litter
in your yard, and cleaning up borders; and perhaps targeted control
applications for hosts as well as tick habitat. Lyme disease is the most common tickborne disease in the
United States and is an increasing national public health problem. In 1992
Lyme disease was known to occur in 45 states but is most prevalent in
eastern coastal areas from Massachusetts to Maryland. In humans mid some
animals, especially dogs, Borrelia burgdorferi infection can produce skin,
arthritic, cardiac, and neurological symptoms. Description, Life Cycle, and Biology of the Tick
The adult deer tick is about the size of a sesame seed
(2.5 mm), oval, with four pairs of legs and a flattened body. Adult deer
ticks are most active in October and November and again during April and
May. They commonly attach to white-tailed deer, dogs, horses and humans.
During fall and spring the adults may be found "questing" waiting in
ambush on vegetation from ground level to about 18 inches high (deer belly
height) for a suitable host to pass by. After feeding and mating, females drop off their hosts and deposit eggs on the ground in the fall and early spring. Fail eggs overwinter, and eggs hatch into larvae in the summer. The larval deer tick that hatches from the egg in late June or July is very tiny, 0.5mm (about the size of a period). The larva has only three pairs of legs. Larvae attach to white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus) and other small and medium-sized mammals and birds and feed for about three to five days. After feeding they drop from the host, seek a protected site under leaves or in dense vegetation, and overwinter. Larvae pick up the spirochete from infected animals (reservoir hosts). The larvae molt to the nymphal stage in the fall and remain inactive as nymphs until the following summer. Nymphs are the most Important vectors of Lyme dis ease to humans because they are difficult to detect (they are small and have a relatively short feeding period) and because humans are most active outdoors during the summer when nymphs are present. Nymphs occur from late May through July and are about the size of a poppy seed (1.5mm). Nymphs may attach to humans, dogs, horses, cattle, rodents and other small to medium-sized mammals and birds. When an infected nymph feeds on an animal, it may transmit the Lyme disease spirochete. This animal then serves as a reservoir host capable of transmit ting the spirochetes to other deer ticks. The nymphal stage quests on vegetation and when a host brushes against vegetation, the tick clings to it and searches for a suitable feeding site. Ticks do not fly, jump, or actively pursue a host. Nymphs feed for three to five days, drop from the host, and again find shelter under leaves or other vegetation. They molt into adults in the fall. Birds frequenting the forest floor where ticks are present may also serve as hosts for larvae and nymphs. Migrating birds are believed to contribute to the spread of the tick and to the risk of Lyme disease in endemic areas. Deer are largely responsible for maintaining tick populations (but they are not the only animals). Deer are often present in large numbers in wooded sites and are the preferred host on which the adult ticks mate and the females acquire the necessary blood for egg development. Personal
Protection
If you find an attached (embedded in your skin) tick, remove it promptly. Grasp the tick's mouthparts from the side with a fine-pointed tweezers or small forceps as close to the skin as possible and pull gently but steadily upward. You want to avoid crushing the bloated abdomen of the tick which, if squeezed, might introduce the spirochetes and other body fluids into the wound in your skin. Ticks don't fly, jump, or drop from trees. They inhabit shrubby vegetation (nymphs: 4-6" vegetation; adults: waist-high vegetation) and wait for an animal to brush by. They then grasp the animals fur or skin, and typically crawl up the leg. Ticks will wander on the body for 30-60 minutes before they insert their mouthparts and begin to feed. Infected Deer Ticks must feed for at least 12 - 24 Hours before they can begin to transmit the Lyme Disease bacteria. Therefore you should remove ticks as soon as possible. Take a shower after outdoor activity and check your body thoroughly, paying close attention to the armpits, the groin, and neck. Use the buddy system! Look for ticks every night, especially if you have young children. Remove ticks with tweezers only (bent, "needle-nose" tweezers are best). Do not use alcohol, nail polish, hot matches, petroleum jelly, or other methods to remove ticks. These methods may actually traumatize ticks causing them to regurgitate gut contents, which may include the Lyme Disease bacteria. After removing the tick disinfect the bite with rubbing alcohol or povidone iodine. Place the tick in a. small container of rubbing alcohol; write the date and the location on the body where the bite occurred, as well as the geographical site, and save these in case they should be needed later for identification. It may also be helpful to mark on a calendar the day and location of the bite. Symptoms of Lyme Disease in Humans and Animals
Symptoms of Lyme Disease may vary from person to person. Usually a small, red skin rash develops at the site of the tick bite three to 32 days later. Gradually, this area enlarges and there is often a partial clearing at the center, which looks like a doughnut. The rash may be accompanied by flu-like symptoms such as fever, headache, stiff neck, sore and aching muscles and joints, fatigue, sore throat and swollen glands. The symptoms and rash may disappear in several weeks. However, the rash and more serious problems may occur later. Treatment with antibiotics clears up the rash and usually prevents complications. If not treated, Lyme Disease can cause long-term health problems with the joints, nervous system and heart. Animals react to Lyme Disease in different ways. The most common symptoms include lameness, loss of appetite, fever and lethargy. Usually, a rash is not visible. If an animal displays these symptoms, contact a veterinarian. Animals, like humans, usually respond well to antibiotics.
Surveying for Tick Presence Life Cycle of Ixodes scapularis. Stages of development of the tick and
most Important hosts are illustrated. The deer tick has a Dragging and flagging are two techniques used by researchers to find ticks in an area. The dragging technique may be used by individuals to survey for tick presence on home lawns. A drag consists of a one-yard-square piece of white or light-colored sturdy flannel cloth, such as corduroy, attached to a pole. Rope is attached to both ends of the pole to enable the user to pull the drag across a lawn or other area of low vegetation. The cloth is dragged behind the surveyor (see illustration on page 1). This technique works well for nymphs and adults which quest for a host animal. The drag is kept low to the ground - it must brush across the top of the lawn or leaf litter. Drag cloths should be inspected about every 30 seconds for ticks. Suspect ticks are grasped with a forceps and placed in alcohol or a pre-moistened sample vial for later examination. Ragging is similar, but in this case a smaller cloth, the flag, is attached to one end of a pole with the other end used as a handle. The flag is pushed ahead of the collector and it is primarily used in areas of higher vegetation such as thick understudy in wooded areas and brush and shrubs in open areas, or in edge habitats and along property borders where vegetation is thicker. Ticks are usually found within 18 inches of the ground. When surveying always wear protective clothing. Tuck in everything, including pants into socks or boots, to help keep ticks, if present, on the outside of the clothing. If you find deer ticks, you need to decide what to do. Continued surveying will help you determine if the tick was an isolated individual or if you have a larger population in the area. Drag or flag sampling will collect only one of ten ticks in habiting an area. Repeated sampling at different times will in crease the likelihood of finding a tick. Landscape
Management Landscapes may be managed to manipulate wildlife activity patterns, to lower the humidity in habitats where ticks are likely to be found, and to push back the danger zone where tick exposure is likely to occur by manipulating edging and mulching borders. Where possible, keep deer away by reducing deer habitat or fencing them out. Studies show that immature ticks are most abundant in areas where deer are abundant. Mice, the principal reservoir host of the spirochete, and other small mammals can be kept away by reducing cover and thereby having more open areas in the lawn, along walls, and along borders so that mice are less likely to find cover. If possible, eliminate wooded brush-covered habitat or fence it off so people and pets do not have ready access to it. Vegetative screens between properties may harbor all types of animal activity and therefore provide a potential habitat for ticks. Pruning off the lower branches of a vegetative screen will help reduce habitat but still will provide a screen. Using a light mulch, one to two inches deep, or bare soil around shrubbery also helps reduce habitat. When mowing along edge habitat, direct the mower discharge into shrubbery rather than onto the lawn. Clean up storage areas, woodpiles, and junk piles. If you feed birds, position the bird feeders away from rodent habitat, clean up loose seed, and stop feeding by April and do not resume again until after larval tick activity has decreased in October or November. Removing leaf litter and planting grass under shade trees will help reduce tick abundance.
Behavioral Considerations Restrict children's activities to managed areas, those less likely to harbor ticks. If necessary, fence off areas for children to play in. Keep pets either entirely inside or entirely outside during tick season. Use pet products to reduce tick exposure (check with your veterinarian). Adjust your habits regarding pets; for example, keep them out of human living or sleeping areas, or both. Groom and make a tick check of animals after each possible tick exposure. Get into the habit of checking people for ticks right after ending outdoor activities. In infested areas it may be best to remove clothes before entering the living area and seal them in a plastic beg until they are laundered or put into a clothes dryer ticks cannot survive a 20-minute tumble in dry heat. Discovery and prompt removal (within 24 hours) of attached ticks can minimize the risk of infection. The longer you wait to remove an attached tick, the more you increase the chances of infection. Chemical
Management In work done in Westchester County, N.Y., researchers at the New York Medical College's Lyme Disease Center (Valhalla) have shown that in areas where the deer tick is abundant, it may be present on home lawns. Studies show that in those areas, 70 percent of humans who get Lyme disease are bitten by ticks in their yard. In these circumstances, given the presence of ticks on residential properties, the high infection rates of ticks with spirochetes, and the lack of feasible alternative control strategies, pesticide applications are currently the most effective means for reducing deer ticks. Surveying by dragging will help determine if the ticks are present in lawn areas, or in edge or border areas only. If ticks are present only in certain areas, limiting chemical treatment to edges and borders and to selective habitats is preferred over entire lawn treatment. One habitat-targeted product is Damminix (a synthetic based pyrethroid), an acaricide for edge use. It targets the ticks feeding on white-footed mice, an important reservoir animal. The product consists of cardboard tubes containing treated cot ton balls. Mice take the cotton balls to their nests, and the ticks in the nests or on the mice while using the nests are then killed. Unfortunately, results in New York State have been disappointing. Total numbers of ticks may not be significantly reduced by Damminix. As with any pesticide read the entire directions first and follow them accurately. Control measures should be aimed at the nymphal stage be cause it is the most likely stage to transmit Lyme disease to humans. Researchers have shown that one application of a certain insecticide made at the peak of nymphal populations (very early in June for Westchester County) has reduced tick populations 68 to 97 percent. The insecticides tested were carbaryl, chlorpyrifos, and cyfluthrin, commercially known as Sevin, Dursban, and Tempo, respectively. Certain formulations of these insecticides are registered for treating lawns and for tick control, and they are already in wide use for tick control of many lawn pests. Cyfluthrin (Tempo) is a restricted-use pesticide and is available for use by commercially certified pesticide applicators only. Based on these results, where nymphal populations exist determined by surveying the property, one application of a registered insecticide in early June is recommended. There is no need for repeated applications at regular intervals during the summer. Liquid or granular formulations registered for tick control may be used; liquids should be allowed to dry thoroughly before human or pets reenter the area. Be especially careful using such materials near bodies of water - do not contaminate water. Wear and eye protection and do not eat or smoke when applying any pesticide. Wash skin and clothing after application, and always launder pesticide-contaminated clothing separately. The research showed a second application in late September or early October controlled the fall and spring adults. Ticks of the same stage will not reappear until after they have fed and molted. Reinfestation takes several months to a year to occur. Research on control of ticks is ongoing. Workers have
shown that by using registered insecticides at the proper time, tick
contact maybe greatly reduced. Treating with an insecticide does not
guarantee, however, that no ticks will be present. People still need to
protect themselves by dressing appropriately, using repellent: when in
potentially tick-infested areas, and checking daily for the presence of
ticks (and removing them if found). Information obtained with alterations from: Department of Entomology Every effort has been made to provide correct, complete and up-to-date pest management information for New York State in this publication. Changes in pesticide regulations thus occur constantly, and human errors are still possible. These recommendations are not a substitute for pesticide labeling. The above information has been obtained from the Cornell Cooperative Extension of Suffolk County and has been repeated here with their permission. None of the above has been verified by members of the Fair Harbor Community Association or employees of FairHarbor.com READ THE LABEL CAREFULLY BEFORE APPLYING ANY PESTICIDE BECOME TICK AWARE! Link to: Lyme
Disease Foundation, Inc.
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two-year life cycle: the first year, eggs and larvae are present; the
second year, nymphs and adults. Life cycles of individual ticks may
overlap, meaning that all stages may occur on a particular property in one
year.
Revised:
January 14, 2004