First, I want to say thank you to everyone who registered for the upcoming Old-Growth Forest Ecology Outing on May 31 and June 1.  Both programs are sold out.  Stay tuned for more Learn Your Land events this year!

I also want to mention that Exploring Wild Ecosystems will be open for enrollment on Monday, May 12.  This is my newest online course intentionally designed to improve your practical knowledge of ecology.  If you’re looking to develop ecological literacy and become a better naturalist, consider enrolling on Monday, May 12.

And now on to the newest video…

If you’ve spent enough time in tick-prone areas, you’ve probably seen ticks sucking the blood of deer.  Logically, it makes sense that deer would at least be carriers of the Lyme disease spirochete.  After all, white-footed mice and other mammalian tick hosts can be reservoirs for the bacteria.  

But white-tailed deer are different.  Their blood isn’t like the blood of other animals.

Scientists have been studying the relationship between deer and Lyme disease for decades.  The newest research is quite fascinating, and in a brand-new video, I address some of the misconceptions surrounding the role of deer in transmitting Lyme bacteria.

Do deer ever get Lyme disease?  If they don’t, what is it about deer that makes them immune?  If deer are immune, why do ecologists still advocate for a reduction in the deer herd as a way to reduce Lyme disease rates in humans?

You can watch the brand-new video here.

Thanks for reading and watching, and thanks for your continued support!

— Adam Haritan