For some, Jonah Rehak’s insect obsession is hard to understand. “My family hates the freezer,” he said. “There are just vials of June bugs, lady bugs, fireflies and moths everywhere.”
The Martha’s Vineyard tick-borne illness reduction initiative has run out of funds, and barring an influx of money will have to shut down after this summer, program director Richard Johnson confirmed.
A post-summer report says tick populations are up, especially the newest species of disease-carrying arachnid to invade Martha’s Vineyard: the lone star tick.
Lone star tick nymphs and adults are spreading and increasing in numbers, data from the MV Tick Programs 2018 yard surveys shows.
The recent death of a seasonal resident with an apparent case of tularemia has sparked renewed discussion about tick-borne illnesses.