A team of researchers from the University of Massachusetts Amherst say they have come up with a more accurate way to test deer ticks for Powassan, a rare virus that has been found in pockets around the Island.
A team of researchers from the University of Massachusetts Amherst say they have come up with a more accurate way to test deer ticks for Powassan, a rare virus that has been found in pockets around the Island.
Three Asian longhorned ticks were found during yard surveys in Aquinnah and Chilmark earlier in June.
At a half-day long tick-borne illness symposium put on by several local health groups, experts warned of the ticks' presence across the island and gave tips on how to keep an eye out for them.
Once largely isolated to the fringes of the Island, lone star ticks are spreading throughout Martha’s Vineyard, and health officials are advising extra vigilance to avoid the unpleasant consequences of their bite.
Just as medical professionals on the Vineyard are feeling encouraged by the start of a Lyme vaccine trial, Island doctors are reporting numerous instances of itchy, painful rashes caused by lone star tick larvae in so-called “tick bombs.”
Tick-borne illnesses on Martha’s Vineyard have reached possible record highs this year, as lone star ticks and their larvae spread in the Island’s outermost reaches.
