OT Bad news...deer ticks emerging

[The Spin Meister]

Article from New England, where the winter was brutal, says ticks were unaffected by the extreme cold and are emerging in normal numbers.

"Entomologists who study the spindly legged bloodsuckers said most ticks survived freezing New England temperatures due to insulation provided by leaf cover and snow. Numbers would have decreased had there been drier conditions. Most of the Northeast saw above average snowfall this winter......"

"But some experts look to the white-footed mouse population, a favorite host of nymphal ticks, to predict tick numbers. Last year, Rick Ostfeld, a disease ecologist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in the lower Hudson Valley, forecast an influx of ticks since the mice population was high. This year, his test sites have found relatively few mice and chipmunks, so he doesn't expect a high tick crop...."

The mouse population is determined by the mast crop size so it will be very regional/local. IMO

 

[LionDeNittany]

Doesn't seem like bad news.

Seems that nature is doing just fine.

LdN

 

[jbenedict]

Spin thanks for the news

Article from New England, where the winter was brutal, says ticks were unaffected by the extreme cold and are emerging in normal numbers.

"Entomologists who study the spindly legged bloodsuckers said most ticks survived freezing New England temperatures due to insulation provided by leaf cover and snow. Numbers would have decreased had there been drier conditions. Most of the Northeast saw above average snowfall this winter......"

"But some experts look to the white-footed mouse population, a favorite host of nymphal ticks, to predict tick numbers. Last year, Rick Ostfeld, a disease ecologist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in the lower Hudson Valley, forecast an influx of ticks since the mice population was high. This year, his test sites have found relatively few mice and chipmunks, so he doesn't expect a high tick crop...."

The mouse population is determined by the mast crop size so it will be very regional/local. IMO[/QUOTE.
The ticks were brutal on my cats last year. It looks much the same for this year. Thanks for the information.

 

[NedFromYork]

I would say brutal spring, not a brutal winter by New England standards at all. MUCH worse first 5-6 years out of last 10.

 

[Fayette_LION]

Article from New England, where the winter was brutal, says ticks were unaffected by the extreme cold and are emerging in normal numbers.

"Entomologists who study the spindly legged bloodsuckers said most ticks survived freezing New England temperatures due to insulation provided by leaf cover and snow. Numbers would have decreased had there been drier conditions. Most of the Northeast saw above average snowfall this winter......"

"But some experts look to the white-footed mouse population, a favorite host of nymphal ticks, to predict tick numbers. Last year, Rick Ostfeld, a disease ecologist at the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies in the lower Hudson Valley, forecast an influx of ticks since the mice population was high. This year, his test sites have found relatively few mice and chipmunks, so he doesn't expect a high tick crop...."

The mouse population is determined by the mast crop size so it will be very regional/local. IMO

They've been around all winter. Our dog had 8 between Dec and Mar. Rough year for the pets.