Re: Non S&C : OT An experiment

[Guest guest]

Hi lena,

I don't have the answers to your questions but I am interested in how this

turns out!

This isn't funny, but last year at this time in N.H. my brother's long-haired

golden would go out everyday, roll in the grass and walk back into the house

with 7-9 tics attached.

We never paid much attention till now....but I understand your concern as we

take precautions when mowing and venturing out in the woodsy areas etc. They

are in abundance here....along with deer and many other wild animals. Take

care, JOdie L.

>

> Hi everyone,

> A while ago, I saw a documentary showing two biologists dragging a white cloth

of some sort through a field to get a tick count.

> It's pretty dry here in upstate NY; the lawn/meadows are yellowing, and I'd

like to check the grounds for ticks.

>

> Has anyone any idea how to best do this? Is there a particular kind of fabric?

Does it need to be scented with mammal smells? Any suggestions? I'm just

curious, and would like to do this before and after rain, etc. to see what's

going on here, as far as risk to mowing husband.

>

> Be well,

> Léna

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Lena,

I recently read online about dragging for ticks. I can't for the life of me

recall WHICH website now! Anyway what I read said to use white flannel. Attach

to a stick and drag it flat through the area you want to test. The ticks will

attach to it and you can turn it over and see how many you have. I also belong

to a yahoo group, Michigan Lyme Support. The group owner has participated in

tick searches, trapping birds and mammals to look for ticks, etc. I will ask her

and see what she says was used for the tick dragging.

/MI

>

> Hi everyone,

> A while ago, I saw a documentary showing two biologists dragging a white cloth

of some sort through a field to get a tick count.

> It's pretty dry here in upstate NY; the lawn/meadows are yellowing, and I'd

like to check the grounds for ticks.

>

> Has anyone any idea how to best do this? Is there a particular kind of fabric?

Does it need to be scented with mammal smells? Any suggestions? I'm just

curious, and would like to do this before and after rain, etc. to see what's

going on here, as far as risk to mowing husband.

>

> Be well,

> Léna

>

[Guest guest]

Thanks ! I'll see if I can dig up some flannel!Also, for when we travel, it would help give some idea of how much an area may be infested, before going out into it much.Be well,Léna

Hi Lena,

I recently read online about dragging for ticks. I can't for the life of me recall WHICH website now! Anyway what I read said to use white flannel. Attach to a stick and drag it flat through the area you want to test. The ticks will attach to it and you can turn it over and see how many you have. I also belong to a yahoo group, Michigan Lyme Support. The group owner has participated in tick searches, trapping birds and mammals to look for ticks, etc. I will ask her and see what she says was used for the tick dragging.

/MI

>

> Hi everyone,

> A while ago, I saw a documentary showing two biologists dragging a white cloth of some sort through a field to get a tick count.

> It's pretty dry here in upstate NY; the lawn/meadows are yellowing, and I'd like to check the grounds for ticks.

>

> Has anyone any idea how to best do this? Is there a particular kind of fabric? Does it need to be scented with mammal smells? Any suggestions? I'm just curious, and would like to do this before and after rain, etc. to see what's going on here, as far as risk to mowing husband.

>

> Be well,

> Léna

>

[Guest guest]

Actually, wasn't the dragging of ticks, part of the movie Under Our Skin? I

think I recall a scene near the beginning when they were interviewing a

biologist that was sick with Lyme. If you want to see it, I think it is

available on Hulu.com and probably by now, you can find it on Youtube.

> >

> > Hi everyone,

> > A while ago, I saw a documentary showing two biologists dragging a white

cloth of some sort through a field to get a tick count.

> > It's pretty dry here in upstate NY; the lawn/meadows are yellowing, and I'd

like to check the grounds for ticks.

> >

> > Has anyone any idea how to best do this? Is there a particular kind of

fabric? Does it need to be scented with mammal smells? Any suggestions? I'm just

curious, and would like to do this before and after rain, etc. to see what's

going on here, as far as risk to mowing husband.

> >

> > Be well,

> > Léna

> >

>

[Guest guest]

One of my Lyme books talks about 2 different methods of checking an area for

ticks. They mention that you can use light-colored flannel or corduroy for the

flagging method (as mentions below). They also talk about ticks being

attracted to dry ice, but it only works for lone star ticks. From the book

" Everything You Need to Know About Lyme Disease " by Vanderhoof-Forschner.

> > >

> > > Hi everyone,

> > > A while ago, I saw a documentary showing two biologists dragging a white

cloth of some sort through a field to get a tick count.

> > > It's pretty dry here in upstate NY; the lawn/meadows are yellowing, and

I'd like to check the grounds for ticks.

> > >

> > > Has anyone any idea how to best do this? Is there a particular kind of

fabric? Does it need to be scented with mammal smells? Any suggestions? I'm just

curious, and would like to do this before and after rain, etc. to see what's

going on here, as far as risk to mowing husband.

> > >

> > > Be well,

> > > Léna

> > >

> >

>

[Guest guest]

The dry ice makes sense, as CO2 in breathing is what attracts bugs to people. I thinks that's how those mosquito-zapper machines work too. L

One of my Lyme books talks about 2 different methods of checking an area for ticks. They mention that you can use light-colored flannel or corduroy for the flagging method (as mentions below). They also talk about ticks being attracted to dry ice, but it only works for lone star ticks. From the book "Everything You Need to Know About Lyme Disease" by Vanderhoof-Forschner.

> > >

> > > Hi everyone,

> > > A while ago, I saw a documentary showing two biologists dragging a white cloth of some sort through a field to get a tick count.

> > > It's pretty dry here in upstate NY; the lawn/meadows are yellowing, and I'd like to check the grounds for ticks.

> > >

> > > Has anyone any idea how to best do this? Is there a particular kind of fabric? Does it need to be scented with mammal smells? Any suggestions? I'm just curious, and would like to do this before and after rain, etc. to see what's going on here, as far as risk to mowing husband.

> > >

> > > Be well,

> > > Léna

> > >

> >

>

[Guest guest]

Hi Lena,

I've known people who've used small white sheets to do this...

Here is a link that talks about this:

>>>>Drag sampling is common for approximate determination of tick population.

This is conducted by dragging a 3'x 3' white cloth over the areas that ticks

will be found, i.e. wood lines, brushy areas (up to 3'), tall grass, the first

9' border of grass that meets the woods, etc. Ticks that are looking for a host

will attach themselves to the drag cloth. When you turn the cloth over about

every 50 to 70 feet you may find ticks crawling on the cloth. Collect them for

later identification, if desired. This type of sampling has limitations. Keep

in mind the seasonality of the different stages of ticks and the fact that ticks

are less active on windy or cold days. If you sample when ticks are not very

active, a misleading negative finding may result. Also, less than 10% of the

tick population is collected at any time with drag sampling, so a lot of

sampling may be required to find any ticks if populations aren't very heavy.

One suggestion is to drag sample the same areas on 3 to 4 different days when

conditions are favorable. This will give you a more accurate estimation.<<<

Ticks like to hide out in leaf mold and rotten logs... They also like tall grass

up to 3 feet,

this is usually when they are looking for their next blood meal...

Happy Huntin!

Jim

>

> Hi everyone,

> A while ago, I saw a documentary showing two biologists dragging a white cloth

of some sort through a field to get a tick count.

> It's pretty dry here in upstate NY; the lawn/meadows are yellowing, and I'd

like to check the grounds for ticks.

>

> Has anyone any idea how to best do this? Is there a particular kind of fabric?

Does it need to be scented with mammal smells? Any suggestions? I'm just

curious, and would like to do this before and after rain, etc. to see what's

going on here, as far as risk to mowing husband.

>

> Be well,

> Léna

>