The Ticks that carry Lyme Disease are not getting killed off easily with Warming temperatures allowing them to get through the historical colder months unscathed...........U. of Wisconisn Entomologist Phil Pellitteri says-----"Deer ticks go dormant in frost, but once that hillside heats up at midday, they bounce right back"......"Typically, a drought tears into tick numbers, but we didn't see that this year"...... "Their rebound is impressive compared to past droughts, but no one knows why"...........Deer ticks in the larval stage are usually clean because they're in their first life cycle and commonly target thin-skinned rodents(mice, voles, etc), which is where they acquire Lyme disease bacteria.................... After falling off their first host and reaching their nymph stage, they'll seek a second host, even those with thicker skin, including humans..................It is estimated that Wisconsin sees 30,000 cases of new Lyme Disease annually------We are not getting rid of the ticks anytime soon...................We need a preventive vaccine as this disease can be extremely debilitating and even death causing if not treated with antibiotics very quickly after being bitten

Deer ticks are still around deep in autumn

greenbaypressgazette.com

Barring a statewide
 snowstorm the

 next few days, it's not
 too late to get

outdoors, head for a
hillside with thick 

underbrush, and
 spend the rest of the

 day picking deer ticks.

If you have any
doubts where to find 

the most deer ticks,
 just tag along 

with a grouse hunter or
 help a deer

 hunter track a buck.
 Great tick habitat 

is usually perfect for
hiding grouse,

 deer and rabbits, too.

At least that's the opinion
 of professor

 Phil Pellitteri at the
 University of

 Wisconsin-Madison
. And he should 

know. Not only is Pellitter
i a professional

 entomologist, but he's
 also a serious 

hunter. Pellitteri said it's
uncommon to

 find wood ticks after
 mid-August, but

 it's common to encounter
 deer ticks 

deep into autumn, even
after overnight

 frosts. Pellitteri said
. "You won't ever 

find deer ticks while
walking railroad

 tracks in Madison
 like you do with 

wood ticks. But when
 you're pushing 

through thick brush
on hillsides in fall, 

you'll have no trouble
 finding deer ticks.

 Heaven for grouse
 and rabbits is the

 same for deer ticks."

Pellitteri said deer
 ticks are more 

numerous this year
 than expected after

 widespread drought
in 2012, but reports

 indicate they're not
 exceptionally high

 anywhere in Wisconsin.

"Typically, a drought tears
 into tick 

numbers, but we didn't
see that this year," 

he said. "Their rebound
 is impressive 

compared to past droughts,
but no one

 knows why and I'd just be
 guessing if I

 tried. Their numbers are
moderate.

 There's always areas
where you find 

more than others, but
 I'm not aware

 of any exceptional
regional differences."

The good news is
that we're past 

Wisconsin's worst
season for picking

 up Lyme disease,
which is carried by

 deer ticks. Lyme
disease usually 

spikes in summer
 when deer-tick nymphs

 are abundant. Nymphs
are smaller than

 adult deer ticks, but larger
 than the

 larval-stage ticks found
 in spring.

"We're seeing a real
 connection 

between Lyme disease
 and the deer

 tick's nymph stage,"
Pellitteri said.

Deer ticks in the larval
 stage are usually

 clean because they're
in their first life

 cycle and commonly
 target thin-skinned

 rodents, which is where
 they acquire

 Lyme disease bacteria
. After falling 

off their first host and
reaching their

 nymph stage, they'll
 seek a second

 host, even those with
 thicker skin, 

including humans.

Even though it takes a
 deer tick nymph 

48 hours and more to
 transmit Lyme

 disease, we often
don't notice them 

because they're fairly
 small. They 

certainly aren't the size
 of wood ticks

 that gorge ondogs
for days, and fal

l off when looking like
 fat, gray 

watermelon seeds.

Adult deer ticks can
 transmit Lyme

 disease in autumn,
but because

 they're now larger, it's
 common to

 see or feel them within
 the 48-hour window.

Even so, people who
 spend lots of time

 outdoors in autumn
 must remain vigilant

 for deer ticks. Pellitteri
estimates about 

40 percent of adult deer
 ticks carry Lym

e disease, so doctors often
 give a one-day 

dose of antibiotics as a
 precaution when 

someone digs one
from their hide.

"That's a preventative
 measure that's

 proven effective,"
Pellitteri said. "Doctors 

no longer wait for symptoms
to appear. If

 the person finds a deer
 tick and it's been

 at least 48 hours since
 they were in the woods, 

antibiotics are a good
 precaution."

Further, Wisconsin is
 home to more Lyme 

disease than experts
 once assumed. In fact,

 the U.S. Center for Disease
 Control estimates

 only about 10 percent of
 Lyme disease cases

 get reported. Therefore,
Pellitteri estimates 

Wisconsin generates
about 30,000 cases 

of Lyme disease annually.

No one expects those
 numbers to decline,

 either. Recent research
 has found Lyme 

disease increases as
 coyote populations

 grow, and coyotes are
increasingly 

common in Wisconsin.
 The theory is that

 as coyotes expand
their range and 

numbers, they kill and
 displace gray 

and red foxes, which
prey heavily on 

mice and other small
 rodents.

As rodent numbers
 rebound while

 foxes disappear,
 coyotes don't pick

 up the slack. They
continue targeting

 larger prey. This allows
 a growing 

army of rodents to carry
 deer-tick larvae

 and spread Lyme
disease.(Many

 Biologists dispute
 this notion---

Coyotes are
 outstanding consumers

 of rodents and other 
deer tic carrying 

mammals--Blogger Rick)

Sigh.

Winter's ice and snow
suddenly 

sounds more inviting
. No one gets

 Lyme disease while
 wearing gaiters

 and snowshoes.