NARRAGANSETT
(ecoRI.org news) — There may not yet be a direct link between warmer weather
and disease-carrying insects, but both are on the rise in Rhode Island.
The
state’s temperature is up an average of 2.3 degrees during the past century,
the highest increase in New England.
The warmer seasons offer an inviting
habitat for ticks and mosquitoes and the diseases they carry such as Lyme
disease and West Nile virus.
University
of Rhode Island tick researcher Thomas Mather said 2012 set a record for the
nymphal, or young, deer tick, which are most likely to contract and spread Lyme
disease.
During
a Dec. 10 seminar on climate change at URI, Mather noted that ticks thrive in
humid weather and this year was especially humid in early June when ticks are
most active.
The
exploding tick population, he said, didn't inflate the number of recorded cases
of Lyme disease. But, Mather explained, many cases go unreported to health
officials.
When
he started researching ticks in 1992, Mather only found ticks in 60 percent of
the state. Today, he’s finding ticks in nearly every square foot of open space.
“It’s not just related to the woods anymore. It’s where people are,"
Mather said.
South
Kingstown, Middletown and the Scituate Reservoir have some of the highest tick
concentrations in the Northeast, including the state where Lyme disease
originated. “(Connecticut) holds nothing to what we have in Rhode Island,"
he said.
Mather
and other experts at the seminar noted that there are no studies that link
climate change to the migration of insects and the diseases they carry. But they
expect to see more bugs carrying more diseases in Rhode Island and across New
England.
Al
Gettman, the mosquito abatement coordinator for the state Department of
Environmental Management, said the spread of ticks and mosquitoes carrying West
Nile Virus and EEE is likely to cause greater harm to the poor and countries
with inferior infrastructure. "We'll be able to adapt more easily."
Howard
Ginsberg, of the U.S. Geological Survey and a URI researcher, noted that
bug-carrying diseases like Lyme disease could continue migrating north. And
Rhode Island is in the middle of the most dense spread of the disease.
"Lyme disease is going to affect us for a long time regardless of climate
change."
Mather,
who runs the world’s largest deer tick database, said educating the public is
the best method for preventing the spread vector-borne diseases. His website offers in-depth tips on keeping ticks
at bay, including efforts to develop an anti-tick vaccine.
His
TickSmart literacy campaign educates the public as well educators, health
professionals and camp counselors about risks and avoidance strategies.
Jamestown is the first community to adopt Mather’s Tick Prevention Community
program.
A video of his tick
removal strategy has been a hit on the internet.
Robert
Vanderslice of the state Department of Health organized the seminar as part of
series to address health issues related to climate change. The project is part
of the state Climate Change Commission to foster long-term solutions to climate
change.
EDITOR’S NOTE: Progressive Charlestown maintains a
permanent link to the URI anti-tick program. Click on “Find a Tick” in the
right hand column, just below the weather report.