Portland, Maine: Despite drought, Lyme disease cases came roaring back this fall
[CanLyme Note: Due to the proximity to the Canadian border and the role of our friendly migratory birds in importing infected ticks into Canada in staggering numbers, ie, robins, wrens, etc., Atlantic Canada’s provincial governments must increase public awareness. It is their responsibility.]
Dec. 12th, 2016
This summer’s drought failed to reduce the deer tick population – as some experts had hoped – and Lyme disease cases have soared this fall, turning 2016 into a possible record-setting year for the disease.
Through Dec. 5, Lyme disease cases were 12 percent higher this year when compared to all of 2015, according to statistics from the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
“If any summer drought would have knocked the tick population back, this would have been the summer,” said Charles Lubelczyk, a field biologist with Maine Medical Center Research Institute’s “tick lab.” Rainfall was far below normal this summer, and Maine experienced many hot, dry days, which can be harmful to tick populations, experts said.