A FREE series brought to you by the UMass Laboratory of Medical Zoology and UMass Extension
TickTalk with TickReport is back for 2020! Each month we will hear from Dr. Stephen Rich and the Laboratory of Medical Zoology (LMZ)! TickTalk in 2020 will also feature exciting guest speakers on tick topics that you told us were important to YOU. The series will include discussions on seasonality and life stages of ticks (key to planning intervention and prevention), emerging or invasive tick species, increasing fears of Alpha-gal allergies (allergies to certain meat and animal-related products), dispelling myths of tick control, how ticks use vegetation and leaf litter throughout their life cycle, and many more. Mosquito concerns — including life cycle, behavior, and EEE infection — will also be addressed, and Dr. Rich will discuss the tens of thousands of mosquitoes the LMZ tests each year for a range of viruses. Tune in the 2nd Wednesday of the month!
Preregistration is required to access the webinars. To be notified of upcoming webinar dates and topics, join our e-mail list at: https://ag.umass.edu/landscape/email-list
NOTE REGARDING TICK TESTING: TickReport at the UMass Laboratory of Medical Zoology is open and accepting tick samples for testing. For more details on how to submit samples, go to https://www.tickreport.com
2020 WEBINAR SCHEDULE – 2nd Wednesday of the month
AUGUST 12, 2020 – Extinction of Deer Ticks in North America
Speaker: Dr. Stephen Rich, Professor of Microbiology, University of Massachusetts Amherst; Director the Laboratory of Medical Zoology
Dr. Stephen Rich will discuss a recent publication in Nature (June 2020) from the LMZ that provides insight to the evolutionary and ecological origin of the primary Lyme disease vectors in North America. Register at: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/7268068031726182913
SEPTEMBER 9, 2020 – Biology of Ticks and Other Tick-Borne Disease
Speaker: Daniel Sonenshine, Professor Emeritus, Old Dominion University; Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIH)
Dr. Rich will host Dr. Daniel Sonenshine, preeminent tick biologist who quite literally wrote the book on ticks (Biology of Ticks in two volumes, co-authored with Dr. R. Michael Roe). Dr. Sonenshine’s research interest in ticks precedes the discovery of Lyme disease in North America, and he is thus uniquely qualified to provide a historical context for this public health challenge. Register at: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/751678229293240321
OCTOBER 14, 2020 – Tick-borne Disease Surveillance in the US
Speaker: Dr. Ben Beard, Deputy Director, Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Dr. Rich welcomes Dr. Ben Beard to the TickTalk webinar. Dr. Beard will present the latest CDC findings on the burdens of tick-borne disease and public health trends. Register at: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/7480889502398662145
NOVEMBER 18, 2020 – Babesiosis
Speaker: Dr. Sam R. Telford III, Professor, Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University
Dr. Telford III joins Dr. Rich on the TickTalk webinar to discuss the second-most commonly reported tick-borne disease in North America (after Lyme disease). Babesiosis is a malaria-like illness transmitted by the same ticks as Lyme disease. Dr. Telford is recognized as a global authority on this disease. Register at: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/3144222128403757825
DECEMBER 9, 2020 – Topic TBD
Register at: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/2502047964154713345
ARCHIVED WEBINARS (see links below)
2020
- Seasonal Variation in Activity and Abundance of Human-biting Ticks (2/12/20)
- Tick Behavior: Finding Hosts and Feeding (3/11/20)
- An Update from TickReport (4/8/20)
- Ticks & Red Meat Allergies: The Latest Science (5/13/20 )
- Tick Management and Control (6/10/20)
- Biology of Powassan and Other Tick-borne Viruses (7/8/20)
2019
- Ticks And Personal Protection (2/13/19)
- Deer Ticks (Ixodes scapularis) and Associated Diseases (3/13/19)
- 2018/2019 Tick Update From the UMass Laboratory of Medical Zoology (LMZ) (4/10/19)
- American Dog Ticks (Dermacentor variabilis) and Lonestar Ticks (Amblyomma americanum) and Associated Diseases (5/8/19)
- 2019 Tick & EEE Update From the UMass Laboratory of Medical Zoology (LMZ) (10/9/19)
