Re: High Correlation Between Acorn Abundance and Tick Populations

[Guest guest]

>

> Why Ecologists are Going Nuts Over Preventing Lyme Disease

thanks, I enjoyed Ostfeld's presentation at IOM (one of the few that was

valuable IMHO, amid a lot of IDSA nonsense).

I'm battling the shortsighted deer>lyme view within the Dutch CDC and government

in general. They are now going to start a trial with the US 4-poster devices

(using acaricides), and probably also shooting the deer (as they 'have to do

something' with the ever rising LD numbers and growing political pressure). The

shooting part always occurs just before Christmas (you are not allowed to hunt

deer here normally ...).

It seems to me that the suggestion that deer cause lyme is yet another bad idea

coming from the US, and it is very difficult to get rid of it. Unfortunately,

many lyme patients also spread these stories.

Unlike in most LD endemic areas in the US, deer are rare in most of the

Netherlands but we are an LD hotspot anyway (with very high Bb infection rates

in ticks in some areas, like near the coast). We don't have any 'islands' where

killing all the deer would work, but they are going to spend millions on a trial

of this bad US idea anyway, and there is not a single penny for better

diagnostics or treatment research.

As for now, it seems like the authorities don't want to listen to advice and

will proceed as planned

[Guest guest]

My neighborhood is over run with deer and a wooded area close to house.  In this

area they allow hunting of deer due to overpopulation...they are frequently

involve car accidents.   I hate it but there are few natural predators. 

Intereesting that lyme is a problem in locations without deer. 

 

>

> Why Ecologists are Going Nuts Over Preventing Lyme Disease

thanks, I enjoyed Ostfeld's presentation at IOM (one of the few that was

valuable IMHO, amid a lot of IDSA nonsense).

I'm battling the shortsighted deer>lyme view within the Dutch CDC and government

in general. They are now going to start a trial with the US 4-poster devices

(using acaricides), and probably also shooting the deer (as they 'have to do

something' with the ever rising LD numbers and growing political pressure). The

shooting part always occurs just before Christmas (you are not allowed to hunt

deer here normally ...).

It seems to me that the suggestion that deer cause lyme is yet another bad idea

coming from the US, and it is very difficult to get rid of it. Unfortunately,

many lyme patients also spread these stories.

Unlike in most LD endemic areas in the US, deer are rare in most of the

Netherlands but we are an LD hotspot anyway (with very high Bb infection rates

in ticks in some areas, like near the coast). We don't have any 'islands' where

killing all the deer would work, but they are going to spend millions on a trial

of this bad US idea anyway, and there is not a single penny for better

diagnostics or treatment research.

As for now, it seems like the authorities don't want to listen to advice and

will proceed as planned

[Guest guest]

>

> My neighborhood is over run with deer and a wooded area close to house.  In

this area they allow hunting of deer due to overpopulation...they are frequently

involve car accidents.   I hate it but there are few natural predators. 

yes, there are other issues involved.

In a small forest in my area there are about 500 deer (have been there in these

numbers for ages, never a problem) and there are now frequent car accidents.

This is the result of stupid government, who decided some years ago to make a

highway lining the small forest, and allow people to use 4WD cars and

mountainbikes in the recreational areas. The deer get scared from all the noise,

try to escape from the forest and bump into a car on the highway. Easy solution:

shoot the dear.

The major problem though seems to be that the deer eat the begonias and other

plants in the second home gardens of some local politicians. And sometimes they

even leave some droppings, outrageous ...

> Intereesting that lyme is a problem in locations without deer. 

it is like that in many parts of the world. Several good studies from Europe

prove that if you remove the deer (or other big grazing animals) the lyme

problem gets worse (at least the number of infected nymphs gets worse, difficult

to make a direct correlation with Lyme).

Ostfeld btw also says that removing or limiting deer numbers will often make the

tick problem worse, it depends on the situation. Most of the US studies about

killing deer or using acaricides are totally unrepresentative; unfortunately

people listen to what appeals and not to what makes sense.