Prioritizing Lyme borreliosis risk areas for forest and nature management based on novel insights in tick ecology.

Cases of Lyme borreliosis, a disease transmitted to humans by the castor bean tick (Ixodes ricinus), have increased in recent years. To take efficient action it is important to know at which locations, frequently visited by humans, infected ticks can be found. Other studies have shown that certain forest types contain more ticks than others but it is not known what determines the spatial distribution of ticks within a suitable area. In this PhD project, I will investigate the distribution of ticks within forest, with respect to the amount of visitors frequent each location. Subsequently I will examine why ticks end up in this specific location. One aspect that may lead to the observed tick distribution is the location where ticks drop off their hosts after feeding on them, be it deer or smaller animals. To look into this, I will investigate where in our study areas hosts spend their time and where ticks prefer to drop off. Lastly, we will determine in the field which circumstances lead to high mortality among ticks. In these circumstances, there is lesser for intervention. Our findings will be summarized and translated into management recommendations for forest managers and policy makers. This will allow them to organise and manage forests in a more efficient way and reduce tick densities more efficiently. This will save time and money and minimize public health risks for visitors.

Keywords:PARASITOLOGY, NATURE MANAGEMENT, LYME BORRELIOSIS

Disciplines:Animal ecology, Terrestrial ecology, Infectious diseases, Parasitology, Environmental health and safety

Project type:Collaboration project