vanessa farnsworth's blog

Colorado tick fever

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I think it's safe to say that Colorado tick fever (CTF) is one of those tick-borne illnesses that few Canadians have ever heard of -- and there's a good reason for that.

Borrelia miyamotoi disease

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Borrelia miyamotoi disease (sometimes referred to at hard tick relapsing fever or HTRF) is one of those tick-borne illnesses that seems to have gone from completely unknown to widely discussed in the blink of an eye.

Tularemia

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Tularemia, also known as rabbit fever, is a plague-like illness that was first documented in Tulare, California in 1911.We know little about tularemia in Canada except that it appears to be rare in this country. The first known Canadian case was recorded in Timmins, Ontario in 1930, and the disease is considered to be endemic in Central and Western Canada, less so in the East.

Rocky Mountain spotted fever

Submitted by vanessa farnsworth on

It’s widely acknowledged that Lyme disease risk varies from one region to the next, but what’s not as well recognized is that a person’s chances of contracting non-Lyme tick-borne infections can also vary greatly between regions.

Rocky Mountain spotted fever (RMSF) tends to get little press in eastern Canada, largely because it’s extremely rare for a case to occur outside of the three western provinces. But if you happen to live in Saskatchewan, Alberta, or BC (or live anywhere in the rest of Canada and have extremely poor luck), RMSF is worth knowing about.

Know your ticks: Winter tick (Dermacentor albipictus)

Submitted by vanessa farnsworth on

The winter or moose tick (Dermacentor albipictus) is a large reddish-brown to grey-brown tick that's similar in appearance to other dermacentor tick species (American dog ticks, Rocky Mountain wood ticks) found in Canada and inhabits an extensive geographic area that includes every Canadian province and territory. The farthest north they've been found is southern Yukon.

Know your ticks: Coastal bird tick (Ixodes auritulus)

Submitted by vanessa farnsworth on

First described in 1899, the coastal bird tick is native to BC. However, it's not terribly well studied and little is known about its life history. Early researchers describe it as being fairly common in coastal areas of the province where it mainly feeds on grouse.

What we know about this tick species is largely based on records from more than 50 years ago and scant research in recent years which show that specimens have been collected from at least 10 bird species in BC including sooty grouse and California quail.

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