Project Overview

Reports

Commodities

• Community and Urban Pest Management: public health

• Ecosystem: Ecosystem

• Human Health: other

• Natural Areas: other, wildlife

Target Pests

Practices

• Pest Management: chemical control, cultural control, disease vectors, habitat modification

• Natural Resources/Environment: other

• Sustainable Communities: other, quality of life

Founded in 2013 by the IPM Institute of North America, the Public Tick IPM Working Group (WG) aspires to expand the network of collaborators working to improve adoption of integrated tick management (ITM) strategies and reduce the risk of human and animal exposure to infected ticks. The WG focuses on ticks and tick-borne diseases (TBDs) which pose a major public-health risk to people, pets and livestock in the North Central region and nationally. Regions at risk from TBDs, like the North Central and Northeast, require more robust ITM interventions including continuous surveillance, education and prevention. ITM strategies combine multiple methods to maximize the effectiveness of tick control while reducing adverse impacts on human, animal and environmental health (Stafford et al. 2017). These methods may include habitat modification, personal tick checks, repellant-treated clothing, population management of host animals and pesticide applications, including bio-pesticides (Stafford et al. 2017).?The WG will enhance tick and TBD knowledge by hosting eight webinars and its flagship Tick Academy virtually, developing a pest alert for Gulf coast tick, whose range is expanding into the North Central region, and presenting on ITM and TBD at the Entomological Society of America’s North Central Branch 2026 Meeting. The WG will also continue working with Indian Health Services in Minnesota and Wisconsin to distribute educational tick collection kits in an effort to help support historically underserved communities. 

Objectives: 

1. By April of 2026, the WG will raise tick and TBD awareness by engaging and increasing membership from the public health, pest management and natural resource management sectors by hosting eight monthly webinars open to the public and all WG members.   

1. By April 2026, the WG will enhance knowledge of tick lifecycles, identification, taxonomy and best management practices among public health professionals, land managers and WG members by hosting its annual virtual Tick Academy and will offer free admission and a poster session for undergraduate/graduate students. 

1. By April of 2026, the WG will strengthen its ability to support institutions with the development and implementation of ITM programs by developing a pest alert for the Gulf Coast Tick, updating and providing resources for current ITM and tick-borne diseases on the Tick IPM WG website, providing educational tick collection resources to Indian Health Services located in Minnesota and Wisconsin and presenting at the Entomological Society of America’s North Central Branch 2026 Meeting. 

1. By April of 2026, the WG will raise tick and TBD awareness by engaging and increasing membership from the public health, pest management and natural resource management sectors by hosting eight monthly webinars open to the public and all WG members.   
2. By April 2026, the WG will enhance knowledge of tick lifecycles, identification, taxonomy and best management practices among public health professionals, land managers and WG members by hosting its annual virtual Tick Academy and will offer free admission and a poster session for undergraduate/graduate students. 
3. By April of 2026, the WG will strengthen its ability to support institutions with the development and implementation of ITM programs by developing a pest alert for the Gulf Coast Tick, updating and providing resources for current ITM and tick-borne diseases on the Tick IPM WG website, providing educational tick collection resources to Indian Health Services located in Minnesota and Wisconsin and presenting at the Entomological Society of America’s North Central Branch 2026 Meeting.