The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry announced Wednesday that Oklahoma is the 20th state to confirm the presence of the Asian longhorned tick . Prior to 2017, the ticks were exclusive to the eastern hemisphere, in countries such as China, Japan and Korea. Their presence was first detected in the United States in New Jersey.
The ticks can carry both human and animal diseases. In large numbers they may cause severe anemia in animals they infest, the state agency said in a release. An investigation will be conducted to try to determine how the ticks arrived in Oklahoma and how widespread they are.
“We encourage all livestock owners to closely monitor their livestock,” the agency said. The Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry maintains a website with information about threats posed by invasive species. According to the U.
S. Department of Agriculture, Asian longhorned ticks are parthenogenetic, meaning females can reproduce without mating, essentially cloning themselves by laying up to 3,000 eggs at a time. The ticks can cause distress when they latch onto hosts in large numbers.
They may spread theileria, a disease that can cause severe anemia resulting in death in cows. Listen now and subscribe: Apple Podcasts | Google Podcasts | Spotify | RSS Feed | SoundStack | All Of Our Podcasts The ticks have been found on other hosts, as well, including dogs, cats, horses, white-tailed deer and Canada geese. Asian longhorned ticks collected in Pennsylvania tested positive for the bacteria that cause Lyme disease and anaplasmosis.
However, more research is necessary to determine the tick’s impact on human health. Investigation into their capacity to acquire and transmit pathogens is ongoing. The Oklahoma agriculture agency advised ranchers to contact their county’s Oklahoma State University Extension Office for instructions if they find unusual-looking ticks on livestock.
Unfed Asian longhorned ticks are light reddish-tan to dark reddish with brown, dark markings. Adult females are grey-green with yellowish markings and may grow to the size of a pea after feeding. Male ticks are rare.
The ticks are active from spring through fall. Nymphs are most active from late spring through mid-summer, while adults are most active from June through August. Asian longhorned tick larvae have a marked increase in activity in August and September, when thousands of ticks may be found on one animal.
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