Connecticut

A new study suggests that changing climate patterns may be altering the life cycles of blacklegged ticks in the northeastern United States, which could increase transmission among animals – and ultimately humans – of certain pathogens, including the bacterium that causes Lyme disease.

Hickling’s work is also in collaboration with scientist Jean Tsao of Michigan State University and is part of an EEID project to identify the ecological factors leading to distributions of tick species and pathogens–in particular, where the Lyme disease tick and pathogen are found.

Lyme-infected blacklegged ticks are expanding south through Virginia, and lone star ticks are moving north, the NSF said in its statement. “The bite of the lone star tick can create a bulls-eye rash that appears like that of Lyme disease, but the rash isn’t caused by the Lyme bacteria. The scientists say that this almost certainly leads to misdiagnosis of some patients in mid-Atlantic states, where both tick species are common.”