TEJANI, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
>> THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
>> IN OTHER NEWS, TICK
POPULATIONS IN WISCONSIN HAVE
BEEN GROWING SLOWLY FOR DECADES.
THIS SPRING, HOWEVER, NEW AND
EARLY ACTIVITY HAS THE ATTENTION
OF SCIENTISTS WHO STUDY THESE
TINY CARRIERS OF DISEASE.
MARISA WOJCIK TOOK A WALK IN THE
WOODS WITH DIRECTOR OF THE UPPER
MIDWESTERN CENTER OF EXCELLENCE
IS FOR VECTOR-BORNE DISEASE,
SUSAN PASKEWITZ, TO LEARN MORE.
>> WE'RE SEEING MORE TICKS IN
MORE PLACES.
>> SUSAN PASKEWITZ'S JOB IS TO
SEEK OUT THE CRAWLING CREATURES
THAT MAKE THE REST OF US CRINGE.
TICKS.
>> THEY'VE INVADED A LOT OF
LOCATIONS IN THE STATE WHERE WE
DIDN'T USED TO BE ABLE TO FIND
THEM AND THAT'S PARTICULARLY
DOWN IN THE SOUTHERN QUARTER AND
THEN THE EASTERN, SAY, QUARTER
TO THIRD OF THE STATE EXPERT
IMMATURE STAGES ARE GOING TO BE
REALLY LOW SO DOWN HERE IN THE
LEAF LITTER, THEY MAY BE UP ON
TOP OF THIS VEGETATION, AND OUR
RESEARCH REALLY FOCUSES ON WHAT
INCREASES PEOPLE'S RISK OF
EXPOSURE AND THEN, TWO, WHAT CAN
WE DO ABOUT IT.
>> SHE DRAGS HER WHITE CANVAS
OVER THE FOREST FLOOR TO FIND
THESE MINUTE E MINUSCULE SPARE .
>> THEY ARE IN WOODED LOCATIONS.
>> AND THE RESEARCH POINTS TO A
GROWING POPULATION.
>> 10, 20 YEARS AGO, MAYBE 50 OF
THE 72 WISCONSIN COUNTIES HAD AN
ESTABLISHED POPULATION OF DEER
TICKS AND NOW THERE'S ONLY ONE
COUNTY WHERE WE DON'T FINDS
THEM.
>> WHILE THAT GROWTH HAS TAKEN
DECADES, THIS SPRING, THERE'S A
NEW DEVELOPMENT.
>> ONE NEW THING WE'VE SEEN THIS
YEAR IS EARLIER ACTIVITY OF THE
JUVENILE STAGE THAT WE CALL A
NYMPH.
>> OR, AS SHE REFERRED TO THEM,
TEENAGER TICKS.
>> THE NYMPHS ARE THE MOST
IMPORTANT STAGE IN TERMS OF
DISEASE TRANSMISSION AND WE
THINK THAT THAT'S BECAUSE
THEY'RE SO MUCH SMALLER THAN THE
ADULT DEER TICKS.
>> DEER TICKS ARE THE SMALLEST
AND MOST COMMONLY KNOWN TO
SPREAD LYME DISEASE.
>> ADULT DEER TICKS ARE BIG
ENOUGH SO THAT YOU'RE GOING TO
FEEL THEM WHEN THEY'RE CRAWLING
ON YOU, USUALLY, OR EVEN IF YOU
DON'T, WHEN YOU'RE CHECKING YOUR
BODY, YOU MAY FEEL A LITTLE LUMP
AND SO YOU RECOGNIZE AND YOU CAN
REMOVE THOSE QUICKLY.
THE NYMPHS, THOUGH, THEY REALLY
DON'T TRIGGER ANY KIND OF A
RESPONSE.
YOU DON'T FEEL THEM MOVING ON SO
YOU AND THEY'RE SO SMALL, LIKE
THE SIZE OF A POPPY SEED OR
SMALL FRECKLE, BUT THEY ARE
ACTUALLY HARD TO DETECT ON YOUR
BODY.
>> THE EARLIER ACTIVITY OF THE
NYMPH MEANS MORE CHANCES TO
SPREAD LYME.
>> THIS YEAR, WE SAW NYMPHS IN
MIDDLE MAY FOR THE FIRST TIME SO
A GOOD WEEK TO TWO WEEKS BEFORE
WE'D USUALLY BE ABLE TO PICK
THEM UP, AND THAT IS PROBABLY
RELATED TO WARMER SPRINGS,
WARMER TEMPERATURES AND THEY'RE
GETTING ACTIVE EARLIER.
>> IN TERMS OF LYME DISEASE,
WHICH IS THE DISEASE THAT WE SEE
THE MOST ANAHEIM CASES IN OUR
STATE -- HUMAN CASES IN OUR
STATE, WE'VE BEEN SEEING A
STEADY INCREASE.
I THINK LAST YEAR, IT WAS OVER
4,000 CASES THAT WERE REPORTED
TO THE STATE.
>> LYME DISEASE IS USUALLY
SPOTTED BY A TELLTALE SIGN.
>> FOR PEOPLE WHO GET A
BULL'S-EYE RASH AT THE SITE OF
THE TICK BITE OR DOESN'T ALWAYS
LOOK LIKE A BULL'S-EYE BUT A
LARGE RASH THERE, IT'S NOT HARD.
A DOCTOR WILL KNOW RIGHT AWAY
WHAT THAT IS AND HOW TO TREAT
IT.
>> TO HELP THE HUMAN TUSSLE WITH
TICKS, THEY'RE USING TECHNOLOGY.
>> THE TICK APP IS A RESEARCH
TOOL THAT WE DEVELOPED TO BOTH
EDUCATE PEOPLE AND LEARN MORE
ABOUT WHERE TICKS AND LYME
DISEASE ARE BEING FOUND.
>> YOU'D HAVE THIS OPTION, IF
YOU DID GET ANY TICKS ON YOU, TO
TAKE PICTURES, SEND THEM
DIRECTLY TO THE SCIENTISTS.
WE CAN IDENTIFY THEM, GIVE YOU
AN ESTIMATE FOR HOW LONG THE
TICK HAS BEEN FEEDING AND THEN
MAKE SOME SUGGESTIONS ABOUT WHAT
YOU MIGHT WANT TO DO AS YOUR
NEXT STEPS.
IT ALSO HAS SOME REALLY GREAT
INFORMATION IN IT THAT YOU CAN
USE TO IDENTIFY THE TICK
YOURSELF.
>> AND PERHAPS ONE DAY HARNESS
MACHINE LEARNING TO IDENTIFY
TICKS.
IN THE MEANTIME, RESEARCHERS
LIKE PASKEWITZ ARE ALSO LEARNING
ABOUT HUMANS.
>> SOME OF THE THINGS THAT WE'VE
LEARNED FROM OUR TICK APP TOOL
ARE THAT PEOPLE MAYBE DON'T
REALLY REALIZE WHERE THEY'RE
BEING EXPOSED TO TICKS.
AN ADULT TICK WOULDN'T BE ON YOU
FOR MORE THAN A WEEK, SEVEN
DAYS, AND YET WE HAVE PEOPLE
TELLING US THAT THEY PICKED UP
TICKS IN PLACES THAT THEY
VISITED A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO.
MANY PEOPLE ARE IMAGINING THAT
IT'S WHEN THEY GO TO THEIR
CABINS OR WHEN THEY'RE OUT IN
THE WOODS HIKING, INSTEAD OF IN
THEIR OWN YARDS.
IN SPITE OF ALL THIS, THAT
DOESN'T MEAN THAT YOU STILL
CAN'T GET OUTDOORS.
>> WE CERTAINLY WANT PEOPLE TO
BE OUT ENJOYING OUR BEAUTIFUL
WOODS IN WISCONSIN AND NOT TO BE
AFRAID TO DO THAT BECAUSE OF
TICKS, BUT THEY SHOULD JUST TAKE
THE PRECAUTIONS TO MAKE SURE
THAT THEY, THEIR KIDS, THEIR
PETS ARE PROTECTED.
WEARING LIGHT-COLORED CLOTHING
SO THAT IF YOU GET A TICK ON
YOU, YOU'D BE ABLE TO SEE IT
AGAINST THAT BACKGROUND.
IF YOU POTENTIALLY HAVE SOME
TICKS THAT ARE ON THE CLOTHING
THAT MAYBE YOU DON'T SEE, IF YOU
PUT THEM IN THE DRIER AT A HIGH
TEMPERATURE FOR 20, 30 MINUTES
THAT WILL TAKE CARE OF THAT.
WE ALSO RECOMMEND THAT PEOPLE
USE A REPELLANT AND THAT CAN BE
THE SAME KIND OF REPELLANTS THAT
YOU USE FOR MOSQUITO PREVENTION,
AND THEN DO A SHOWER WHERE
YOU'RE JUST REMOVING ANYTHING
THAT MIGHT BE ON EUROPE PERSON,
PERHAPS NOT -- YOUR PERSON,
PERHAPS NOT YET ATTACHED AND
TRYING TO FEED.
>> REPORTING FROM THE WOODS, I'M