NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygiene Overview of Tick Surveillance on Staten Island Office of Vector Surveillance and Control

Tick Facts Are Ticks Insects? Are Ticks Insects? No! they are arachnids Related to spiders and scorpions While insects have six legs, tick adults and nymphs have 8 legs and larvae have 6 legs Are Ticks Insects? A tick and a spider are both arachnids. Arachnids are often confused with insects, but are not insects. Ticks have two body parts – a head fused with a thorax and an abdomen. Insects have three body parts – a head, a thorax and an abdomen. Tick adults have 8 legs and insects have 6 legs. However, the larvae of a tick has 6 legs. Ticks cannot jump or fly. They latch on to their host by questing – ticks position themselves on vegetation and when a host nears the tick wildly moves its front legs and tries to grab the host and take a blood meal. The fact that ticks can feed on multiple hosts and that they feed slowly, make them excellent candidates to acquire and transmit disease or toxins.

Tick Facts Can Ticks Fly or Jump? Can Ticks Fly or Jump? No wings - cannot fly or jump Lay waiting with front legs ready to attach to host (this is called ‘questing’) Can Ticks Fly or Jump? A tick and a spider are both arachnids. Arachnids are often confused with insects, but are not insects. Ticks have two body parts – a head fused with a thorax and an abdomen. Insects have three body parts – a head, a thorax and an abdomen. Tick adults have 8 legs and insects have 6 legs. However, the larvae of a tick has 6 legs. Ticks cannot jump or fly. They latch on to their host by questing – ticks position themselves on vegetation and when a host nears the tick wildly moves its front legs and tries to grab the host and take a blood meal. The fact that ticks can feed on multiple hosts and that they feed slowly, make them excellent candidates to acquire and transmit disease or toxins.

Tick Questing on a Bud

Tick Facts What Do Ticks Eat? What Do Ticks Eat? Ticks have four life stages: egg, larva, nymph and adult It can take up to three years to reach the mature adult stage All stages, except the egg, consume blood from a host animal Ticks feed slowly and can remain attached for days Must be attached for 24 to 48 hours to transmit infection What Do Ticks Eat? A tick and a spider are both arachnids. Arachnids are often confused with insects, but are not insects. Ticks have two body parts – a head fused with a thorax and an abdomen. Insects have three body parts – a head, a thorax and an abdomen. Tick adults have 8 legs and insects have 6 legs. However, the larvae of a tick has 6 legs. Ticks cannot jump or fly. They latch on to their host by questing – ticks position themselves on vegetation and when a host nears the tick wildly moves its front legs and tries to grab the host and take a blood meal. The fact that ticks can feed on multiple hosts and that they feed slowly, make them excellent candidates to acquire and transmit disease or toxins.

Blacklegged Tick This is a picture of the mouth parts of a blacklegged tick. The tick proboscis has a barbed structures make it difficult to remove the tick once it bites. Photo: Tick Management Handbook, Kirby C. Stafford, III

Life Cycle of Blacklegged Tick The life cycle of Ixodes scapularis, the blacklegged deer tick that carries Lyme disease (Borrelia burgdorferi). The Lyme disease is so-named for Lyme, CT, where it was identified approximately 40 years ago as the causative agent for an outbreak of juvenile rheumatoid arthritis. The increase in the deer population has led to the local transmission of Lyme disease in the past few years. Deer are the unaffected hosts for the adult tick, I. scapularis, that carries Lyme disease, and although adult ticks can transmit B. burgdorferi to humans, it is thought to be the nymph form of I. scapularis which feeds on infected field mice that in turn transmits most human disease. The deer blood meal supports the laying of millions of fertilized eggs by the adult I. scapularis, that winter-over, becoming larvae the following spring, which again winter over, becoming nymphs the following spring. The nymphs feed on infected field mice and humans, if possible.

Tick Facts Where are Ticks Found? Where are Ticks Found? Abundant in forested areas and adjacent edge habitats (ecological interface areas) Especially abundant along trails, roadsides and forest boundaries Where are Ticks Found? What Do Ticks Eat? Tick Facts A tick and a spider are both arachnids. Arachnids are often confused with insects, but are not insects. Ticks have two body parts – a head fused with a thorax and an abdomen. Insects have three body parts – a head, a thorax and an abdomen. Tick adults have 8 legs and insects have 6 legs. However, the larvae of a tick has 6 legs. Ticks cannot jump or fly. They latch on to their host by questing – ticks position themselves on vegetation and when a host nears the tick wildly moves its front legs and tries to grab the host and take a blood meal. The fact that ticks can feed on multiple hosts and that they feed slowly, make them excellent candidates to acquire and transmit disease or toxins.

Who is At Risk of Being Bitten by a Tick? Tick Facts Who is At Risk of Being Bitten by a Tick? People with recreational or occupational outdoor activities Hunting, fishing, hiking, camping, collecting mushrooms and berries Occupations such as forestry, farming, and ranching Who is At Risk of Being Bitten by a Tick? A tick and a spider are both arachnids. Arachnids are often confused with insects, but are not insects. Ticks have two body parts – a head fused with a thorax and an abdomen. Insects have three body parts – a head, a thorax and an abdomen. Tick adults have 8 legs and insects have 6 legs. However, the larvae of a tick has 6 legs. Ticks cannot jump or fly. They latch on to their host by questing – ticks position themselves on vegetation and when a host nears the tick wildly moves its front legs and tries to grab the host and take a blood meal. The fact that ticks can feed on multiple hosts and that they feed slowly, make them excellent candidates to acquire and transmit disease or toxins.

Tick Surveillance, 2019 Ongoing throughout 24 Parks Selected sections of parks monitored regularly (monthly) Drag cloth examined for ticks every 10 meters Blue Heron Park Ongoing throughout 24 Parks Ticks collected from the drag cloth At DOHMH’s Lab, ticks are counted and species identified Ticks are prepared for testing 1m2 drag cloths collect ticks along trails and shrub/lawn edges Wolfe’s Pond Park

Medically Important Ticks in Staten Island , Haemaphysalis longicornis American Dog Tick Lone Star Tick Blacklegged Tick Asian Longhorned Tick Haemaphysalis longicornis Discovered by OVSC on June 21, 2018 Current Distribution: Staten Island, Bronx and Brooklyn Collected for the first time from Staten Island in 2014 (DOHMH’s DNA Barcoding Results)

Tick Abundance in Different Parks of Staten Island, 2018 (average monthly count)

Lyme Disease Infection Rates (%) in Blacklegged Ticks (Collected from Staten Island, 2012 – 2017)

Tick Density and Infection Rates Comparison, 2017 (Staten Island Vs Tick Density and Infection Rates Comparison, 2017 (Staten Island Vs. New York State)

Tick Control Study Project Study efficacy of combined use of Met52® (a fungal pesticide) and Tick Control System® (Bait Boxes) against blacklegged tick Study Sites: Fairview Park, Wolfe’s Pond Park, and Conference House Park Project Duration: 2019 – 2021 Products to Be Tested: Met52® (a fungal pesticide) and Tick Control System®

Tick Control System® Child-resistant box containing a bait block Small rodents entering the box are treated with Fipronil (a pesticide) Fipronil kills ticks for 2-4 weeks Fipronil has the same chemical that is commonly used on the household pets for tick control. The concentration of fipronil in the bait boxes is 10 times lower than that found in products used on household pets for tick control.

Met52® - Biological Pesticide Contains spores of the fungus Metarhizium anisopliae. Ticks are usually killed within a week after exposure to the spores. Metarhizium occurs naturally in forest soils Safe product for humans, pets and other mammals. Approved by EPA for use in residential and non-residential areas Ticks infected by the fungi Metarhizium anisopliae Met52 is a biological acaricide that contains spores of the fungus Metarhizium anisopliae. This fungus occurs naturally in forest soils. Met52 is sprayed to plants and the surrounding soil. After exposure to Met52® spores, ticks are usually killed within a week. This product is non-toxic for humans, pets and other mammals. The Environmental Protection Agency has approved its use in residential and non-residential areas as a biopesticide.

Outreach Events in SI 2018 Working with Parks Department and Greenbelt Conservancy, Blue Heron Nature Center and Conference Park Education Center Events organized by the Safe Kids Coalition and Wildlife NYC Presentations at: Senior Centers, DOHMH Healthy Homes for Older Adults Seminar, PTA Meetings, the Great Kills Public Library, Deer Awareness fairs Working closely with SI Community Programs Partnership (CPP)

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