Project Overview

Reports

Commodities

• Animals: other

• Community and Urban Pest Management: commercial, hospitals/healthcare, institution/shelters/municipal buildings/public places, other, public health, residential/housing, school & child care

• Ecosystem: Ecosystem

• Human Health: other, workers, residents, applicators

• Natural Areas: forestry (conifer), forestry (hardwood), other, wildlife

Target Pests

Practices

• Pest Management: behavioral control, biological control, biorational pesticides, botanical pesticides, chemical control, cultural control, decision support system, disease vectors, economic threshold, habitat modification, host resistance, mating disruption, monitoring/scouting, pesticide resistance management, prevention

• Natural Resources/Environment: biodiversity, indicators, other, wildlife

• Sustainable Communities: other, public participation, public policy, quality of life, sustainability measures

a) Ticks and tick-borne diseases (TBDs) pose a major public health risk to people, pets and livestock in the North Central region. The North Central region has recorded seven different tick species and 10 TBDs (U.S. Department of Health & Human Services 2020). All 12 North Central states reported Lyme disease cases to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 2019. Research indicates the overuse of acaricides in conventional-tick management may increase tick populations exhibiting resistance (Rodriguez-Vivas et al. 2018). Regions at risk from TBDs require more robust Integrated Tick Management (ITM) interventions including continuous surveillance, education and prevention.

b) The Public Tick IPM Working Group (WG) aspires to expand the network of stakeholders working to improve tick management strategies and reduce the human risk of exposure to infected ticks. The WG addresses the North Central IPM Center’s priorities of 1) rapidly identify and manage invasive re-emerging, or resistant insect pests to minimize their impacts; 2) conserve pollinators, biological control agents and other non-target insect in managed and unmanaged areas; 3) improve public and animal health by minimizing the impact of insect-vectored diseases and reducing the exposure to unnecessary pesticides; and 4) fund research, training and technical assistance to ensure that diversity, equity and inclusion are foundational to IPM research, extension and teaching in the North Central Region.

The Public Tick IPM WG provides a platform for Federal and non-Federal members to cross-collaborate on TBD control. The North Central IPM Center has annually funded this WG since 2013 that convenes a range of perspectives, including researchers, policy advocates, industry professionals, government leaders and public health professionals. The WG supports and coordinates these partners by maintaining and publishing stakeholder priorities and undertaking projects that address one or more of those priorities. 

c) The Public Tick IPM WG committed to the following objectives in 2023-2024: 1) increase tick and TBD awareness among health professionals, mosquito abatement districts, natural resource managers and the public; 2) enhance knowledge of tick life cycles, identification and taxonomy skills and best management practices among public health professionals, land managers and WG members; and 3) assist underserved and vulnerable communities with developing ITM programs that effectively limit the spread of ticks and TBDs.

d) Overall, this WG strives to increase awareness of new and existing IPM strategies to control ticks and reduce tick-borne disease incidences by providing open access to a large network of tick resources. The WG will disseminate these resources at a national, regional and local scale. Nationally and regionally, the WG will improve ITM knowledge by organizing monthly webinars, hosting the 4^th annual Tick Academy and updating tick resources on the WG’s website and blog. Locally, the WG will support the Indian Health Service’s Bemidji Area Office’s ITM program by improving their tick surveillance capabilities and disseminating tick prevention materials to the 31 federally recognized Bemidji Area tribes located in Michigan, Minnesota and Wisconsin. 

Objective 1: Increase tick and TBD awareness among health professionals, mosquito abatement districts, natural resource managers and the public

Objective 2: Enhance knowledge of tick life cycles, identification and taxonomy skills and best management practices among public health professionals, land managers and WG members

Objective 3: Assist underserved and vulnerable communities with developing integrated tick management programs that effectively limit the spread of ticks and tick-borne diseases.