Dill Quoted in Media Reports on Climate Change Affecting Tick Population
Jim Dill, a pest management specialist with the University of Maine Cooperative Extension, was quoted in reports by WMTW (Channel 8 in Portland) and NECN on climate change affecting the region’s tick population. The Natural Resources Council of Maine presented a report by the National Wildlife Federation which states warmer winters “serve as a welcome mat for pests like ticks to expand their range,” according to NECN. Dill said climate change helps ticks thrive in Maine because warmer temperatures and heavier rains support tick populations in the summer, and insulating blankets of snow protect them in the winter. He said the concern about ticks is that last year the state had 1,400 cases of Lyme disease, as well as other co-infections and tick-borne pathogens. Dill also was quoted in the Portland Press Herald article “Lyme disease down so far, but ticks are gearing up for summer.” “Those ticks were quite fat and happy under the snow, but they were not going to start coming out until the snow was gone,” Dill said. “It’s going to pick up pretty quickly. The population looks pretty strong right now.”