Lone Star Tick Abundance, Fire, and Bison Grazing in Tallgrass Prairie

Cully, Jack F.

doi:10.2307/4003507

Cited by 34 publications

(36 citation statements)

References 13 publications

(7 reference statements)

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“…, Stafford et al. , Cully ), but that these effects do not last beyond the year of the burn (Stafford et al. , Cully ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…, Cully ), but that these effects do not last beyond the year of the burn (Stafford et al. , Cully ). Other studies have even found an amplification of tick populations following fire, but burn frequency may modify these effects with higher frequency fires preventing population recovery (Davidson et al.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…), the frequency of prescribed burns (Davidson et al. , Cully ), and patterns of seasonal activity or host preferences of vector ticks (Spickett et al. , Horak et al.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Burn frequency has also been found to be associated with tick abundance; for example, annual fires have been shown to depress populations of the lone star tick ( Amblyomma americanum ) in the southeast and great plains regions of the United States (Davidson et al. , Cully ). Similarly, higher severity prescribed burns have also been found to lead to larger reductions than low‐severity prescribed burns in populations of Ixodes scapularis , the primary vector of B. burgdorferi s.s. in eastern North America (Stafford et al.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Risk of vector tick exposure initially increases, then declines through time in response to wildfire in California

et al. 2018

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Abstract. Identifying the effects of human-driven perturbations, such as species introductions or habitat fragmentation, on the ecology and dynamics of infectious disease has become a central focus of disease ecologists. Yet, comparatively little is known about how the ecology of zoonotic disease systems responds to catastrophic disturbance events such as wildfires or hurricanes. In California, wildfire disturbance is centrally important to the ecology of forests and oak woodlands and is projected to increase in severity and extent under future climate change. Here, taking advantage of a recent wildfire as a natural experiment, we investigate the effects of wildfire disturbance on the ecology of tick-borne disease in California oak woodlands. We find that wildfire leads to elevated abundance of questing adult and nymphal western blacklegged ticks (Ixodes pacificus) in the year following fire, relative to unburned control plots, but that vector tick abundance declines sharply in the following two years. We find that the abundance of non-competent hosts (western fence lizards) for the Lyme disease bacterium is unaffected by fire, but that the abundances of important reproductive hosts (deer) for ticks and reservoir hosts (dusky-footed woodrats) for tick-borne pathogens are significantly negatively affected by fire. We found ticks and hosts infected with Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato only within the burn extent and only in the year following the wildfire, though rates of infection were exceedingly low representing little risk to humans. In aggregate, due to the differential effects of this catastrophic disturbance event on different key host species and vector tick life stages in the transmission of tick-borne pathogens, we conclude that wildfire may potentially increase risk of exposure to vector ticks in the first year following wildfire in California, but that risk is dampened substantially in following years due to tick population declines and loss of key reservoir hosts from the system.

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“…, Stafford et al. , Cully ), but that these effects do not last beyond the year of the burn (Stafford et al. , Cully ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…), the frequency of prescribed burns (Davidson et al. , Cully ), and patterns of seasonal activity or host preferences of vector ticks (Spickett et al. , Horak et al.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Risk of vector tick exposure initially increases, then declines through time in response to wildfire in California

et al. 2018

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“…Prescribed fire tends to alter microhabitat characteristics such as leaf litter depth and humidity, thus making a site less suitable for ticks (Davidson et al 1994, Iverson and Hutchinson 2002). Fire does reduce the number of ticks initially (Hoch et al 1972, Davidson et al 1994, Cully 1999) due to direct killing and reductions in leaf litter and herbaceous cover (Hoch et al 1972). The leaf litter hypothesis is supported by this study with a positive correlation between the mass of leaf litter and A. americanum populations.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Relationship between habitat type, fire frequency, andAmblyomma americanumpopulations in east-central Alabama

Willis

Robert

Murdock

et al. 2012

Journal of Vector Ecology

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Ticks were collected from 20 sites in the Calhoun, Cherokee, and Cleburne Counties in east-central Alabama areas to determine the relationship between plant physiognomy, environmental variables, and tick populations. Sites investigated included various burning regimes, wildland-urban-interface (WUI), a college campus, and an unmanaged area. Amblyomma americanum (L.) (Acari: Ixodidae) dominated the tick population while Ixodes scapularis Say was not encountered. There were complex differences in tick populations among site conditions. After prescribed burning, the tick population size was small but was larger in subsequent 2-and 5-year post-burn sites. An increase in Odocoileus virginianus foraging in recently burned sites is likely responsible for this phenomenon. WUI areas had the largest tick populations likely due to Odocoileus virginianus activity in an area that provides cover, forage, and a connection to a wildlife refuge. It is possible that the likelihood of humans coming in contact with ticks and tick-borne diseases is greater in WUI areas than in unbroken contiguous forest. A. americanum showed a positive correlation with percent cover of grass and leaf litter mass and a negative relationship with pine sapling density. Variables expected to be strongly correlated with A. americanum populations such as soil moisture, canopy closure, and tree density were found to have weak correlations. Journal of Vector Ecology 37 (2): 373-381. 2012.

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Short‐term impact of a wildfire on the homeostasis of Tropidurus oreadicus lizards

et al. 2023

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Wildfires cause significant changes in natural habitats and can impact lizard populations. Through changes in the thermal environment, reduced prey availability, and increased exposure to parasite vectors, wildfires affect lizard physiology, immunity, and health. We sampled 56 Tropidurus oreadicus lizards from Cerrado savannas of Brazil living in two adjacent sites: one burned 14 days before the study, and the other unburned for 6 years. We logged the air temperatures of those sites throughout fieldwork. We assessed the short‐term possible homeostatic imbalances caused by the fires via measuring body mass, circulating levels of corticosterone (CORT), leukocytes profile changes in heterophile‐lymphocyte ratios (HLRs), innate immunity using the bacterial killing assay (BKA), and the diagnosis of hemoparasites using molecular techniques. The air temperature was significantly higher in the burned site. There was no difference in lizard body mass between the two sites, suggesting that prey availability was not affected by the wildfire. While parasite presence was seemingly not affected by fire, the timing of initial parasite infection for animals in the study was unknown, so we also evaluated parasitism as an independent variable relative to the other metrics. Our results showed that parasitic infections lead to reduced bactericidal capacity and body mass in lizards, suggesting clinical disease and depletion of innate immune resources. Moreover, we observed increased HLR with fire and parasitic infections and a strong negative correlation with BKA. These findings suggest that the increased environmental temperature following wildfires may lead to increased CORT and decreased BKA.

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Lone Star Tick Abundance, Fire, and Bison Grazing in Tallgrass Prairie

Cited by 34 publications

References 13 publications

Risk of vector tick exposure initially increases, then declines through time in response to wildfire in California

Risk of vector tick exposure initially increases, then declines through time in response to wildfire in California

Relationship between habitat type, fire frequency, andAmblyomma americanumpopulations in east-central Alabama

Short‐term impact of a wildfire on the homeostasis of Tropidurus oreadicus lizards

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