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Umaine Tick Surveillance Program Annual Report 2020, University Of Maine Cooperative Extension

General University of Maine Publications

The University of Maine Cooperative Extension Tick Lab conducts surveillance of ticks and tick-borne pathogens to track their distribution, detect trends or changes in tick activity, and to identify areas of risk for tick-borne disease in Maine. In 2019, the UMaine Extension Tick Lab began testing tick samples for the causative agents of Lyme disease, anaplasmosis, and babesiosis; the three most common tick-borne diseases. In 2020, an additional testing panel was added to screen applicable tick species for the causative agents of Rocky Mountain spotted fever, ehrlichiosis, and tularemia. A free tick identification program also continues to be offered.