KTVZ, WKTV interview Gardner about ticks
KTVZ (Channel 21 in Bend, Oregon) and WKTV (Channel 2 in Utica, New York) interviewed Allison Gardner, an assistant professor of arthropod vector biology at the University of Maine, for a report on ticks. “There are numerous tick-borne pathogens that are on the rise,” said Gardner, including babesiosis and anaplasmosis. The most common tick-borne disease is still Lyme disease, and the vast majority of cases may go undetected, according to the report. To protect against ticks, Gardner recommended wearing light-colored clothing and tucking pants into socks. And to reduce the risk of ticks in backyards, people can remove invasive plants like Japanese barberry and bush honeysuckle. “Removing these invasive plants in the landscape have the additional benefit of inhibiting exposure to tick-borne pathogens,” said Gardner.