Range Expansion of Ixodes affinis on the Coastal Plain of Virginia
Description/Abstract/Artist Statement
State Sweep, a collaborative study between the University of Richmond and Old Dominion University, tracked an invading tick species, Ixodes affinis. While I. affinis is a vector of Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, it does not bite humans. Cities and counties were sampled annually from 2012 to 2017 throughout Virginia, and bordering counties in Maryland and North Carolina. In early summer of each year, ticks were collected by flagging at each location in targeted habitat types. Ixodes affinis have expanded north and west across Virginia. Though westward progression has stopped at the Fall Line, the separation of Coastal Plain and Piedmont areas, I. affinis is now considered established throughout the Coastal Plain of Virginia. No such limit was found with the northward movement with I. affinis, which were collected in Maryland in 2017. The I. affinis movement northward and coexistence with the known human-biting tick Ixodes scapularis, will result in the amplification of B. burgdorferi in shared reservoir hosts and increase the chances of human infection by way of I. scapularis.
Faculty Advisor/Mentor
Dr. Holly Gaff
Presentation Type
Poster
Disciplines
Entomology | Parasitology
Session Title
Poster Session
Location
Learning Commons @ Perry Library, Northwest Atrium
Start Date
2-3-2018 8:00 AM
End Date
2-3-2018 12:30 PM
Range Expansion of Ixodes affinis on the Coastal Plain of Virginia
Learning Commons @ Perry Library, Northwest Atrium
State Sweep, a collaborative study between the University of Richmond and Old Dominion University, tracked an invading tick species, Ixodes affinis. While I. affinis is a vector of Borrelia burgdorferi, the causative agent of Lyme disease, it does not bite humans. Cities and counties were sampled annually from 2012 to 2017 throughout Virginia, and bordering counties in Maryland and North Carolina. In early summer of each year, ticks were collected by flagging at each location in targeted habitat types. Ixodes affinis have expanded north and west across Virginia. Though westward progression has stopped at the Fall Line, the separation of Coastal Plain and Piedmont areas, I. affinis is now considered established throughout the Coastal Plain of Virginia. No such limit was found with the northward movement with I. affinis, which were collected in Maryland in 2017. The I. affinis movement northward and coexistence with the known human-biting tick Ixodes scapularis, will result in the amplification of B. burgdorferi in shared reservoir hosts and increase the chances of human infection by way of I. scapularis.