8
Wednesday. July 9.1997
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Research makes avoiding ticks easier
Study shows hikers can avoid the bugs
By Graham Johnson Kansan staff writer
Throw away those cans of smelly tick repellent? Maybe.
A KU professor's research on ticks could make it possible to know exactly where ticks are likely to hide along outdoor trails, making anti-tick sprays at least optional.
J. Gregory Burg, assistant director of undergraduate biology, recently completed research on the common American Dog tick and found that ticks tend to gather in clumps.
"I'm drawing some very fundamental conclusions about the life cycle and place distribution of the American Dog tick." Burg said.
He found that ticks tended to stay together in groups along trails and didn't change their positions very
much or very quickly.
Burg said his findings would make it possible to erect a sign declaring a tick crossing zone.
"Then you could walk on one side of a trail or check your pants legs at the end," Burg said.
Burg began his research six years ago in Kentucky. He sampled the number of American Dog ticks along 100 meters of a nature trail and observed their behavior. When he analyzed the data, he found that ticks tended to be grouped together at intermittent points along the trail. He also found that there were certain periods of the year when ticks were most likely to attach themselves to animals.
Burg said that American Dog ticks were most active in late April and early July.
Though each species of tick differs from the others, Burg said he thought his results on American Dog ticks applied to ticks in general.
In humans, ticks are known to
cause Lyme disease and Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.
According to the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, there were 40 cases of Lyme disease in Kansas in 1996. Symptoms include ring-shaped rashes followed by fever, fatigue, stiffness and headaches. Left untreated, Lyme disease may lead to meningitis and heart problems.
The KDHE reported only three cases of Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever in Kansas in 1996.
Don Mock, entomologist at Kansas State University, said that while Lyme disease was more common, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever was a more serious illness.
Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever symptoms include rashes, fatigue, muscle and head aches, fever and chills. If left untreated, the disease can be fatal, he said.
Most ticks, however, are not harmful to humans and animals, Burg said.
"Less than 1 percent of the tick population in Kansas carries a disease," Burg said.
DeeAnn DeRoin, a physician at Watkins Health Center, said that the center has had only occasional diagnoses of Lyme disease, and she couldn't remember coming across Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever.
When Watkins does come across a case of Lyme disease, DeRoin said patients receive antibiotics and the ticks are plucked off.
According to Burg, the best way to remove a tick is to grab the head only with a pair of tweezers and pull gently.
DeRoin said she had many patients come in to have ticks removed and checked out. She said that the level of public awareness about the risks of tick bites surprised her.
"I wish there was as much public awareness about sexually transmitted diseases as there is about tick risks," DeRoin said.
CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
J. Gregory Burg, assistant director of undergraduate biology, has discovered critical tick behavior that may end the need for tick repellent and lower the incidence of tick-related diseases.
Tracking animal species with another type of tag
KU scientists count license plates rethink inventory
By Crystal Honores Kansan staff writer
These scientists are developing methods to estimate how many species are in restricted areas.
KU researchers are doing the math on plants and animal inventories by counting license plates. Their calculations, they hope, will help them make more informed conservation decisions.
Robert Anderson, graduate student in systematics and ecology, Townsend Peterson, assistant professor of systematics and ecology and curator of birds at the Natural History Museum; and Norman Slade, professor and curator at the Natural History Museum are combining their research to produce more efficient and scientific inventories of species.
In a scientific context, inventory is a list of species in a measured-off area and is counted by researchers during field expeditions. However, Peterson said many field expeditions yield incomplete data because it is difficult to determine when to stop counting.
Inventories are supposed to be near completion when the researchers stop discovering new species. But such tenacity can be a problem. If researchers remain at a site until they stop counting new species, the trip can become long and expensive.
Peterson, for example, made an inventory of birds in Brazil. After three months he was still adding more species to his list.
Anderson said that biodiversity is a priority in many important conservation and land management decisions, but these decisions cannot wait for inventories of all species to be complete.
"Conservation decisions need to be made now." Anderson said.
So Peterson, along with Slade, wants to make the process of scientific inventory more scientific.
To develop and test counting methods, Slade and Peterson decided against more exotic locations and stayed in Lawrence. Instead of counting animal species, the researchers counted automobiles' license plates. They recorded the number of plates from various states appearing in Lawrence and compared that data to 50, the number of states.
These results gave them an idea on how close researchers may get to the truth in their mission to find all species.
From their license-plate findings, they developed formulas to estimate how many species could be left to discover.
Anderson will begin testing the method this August in Costa Rica. He said he planned to stay in the field until he stopped discovering new species.
The completeness of the inventory, the scientists think, should compare to Peterson and Slade's mathematical model.
"Rob will be the first to do a really thorough test of this methodology." Peterson said.
Anderson will do an inventory of small mammals, including mice, rats, shrews and marsupials in Guanacaste Conservation Area, Costa Rica. The area encompasses
We are causing the biggest pulse of extinction since the
dinosaur."
Townsend Peterson Assistant Professor of systematics and ecology and curator of birds at the NaturalHistory Museum
three diverse ecosystems: a dry forest, a wet forest and a mountain forest.
Anderson will catch animals, record their species and release a large portion of them. Some will be collected as voucher specimens to verify identifications.
Anderson's preliminary work will be supported by a $400 Natural History Museum award, a $200 grant from the department of systematics and ecology a $600 award from the Center of Latin American Studies' Tinker Foundation.
Many species of plants and animals may be more important than people realize. For example, Peterson said they could become key sources of medicines.
However, he said he considered that reasoning an easy argument.
"Let's leave practical and economic arguments behind," Peterson said. "We are causing the biggest pulse of extinction since the dinosaurs. Species are going extinct at a terrifying rate and we're in a race to document what's on the earth before it's gone or unstudiable."
Volunteers count fish coast to coast
The Associated Press
ANACAPA ISLAND, Calif. — Carrying waterproof slates and pencils like underwater stock clerks, ocean enthusiasts are taking an inventory of the deep.
Their job is to spot as many fish as possible and record their type and number.
The event is the Great American Fish Count, a two-week, coast-to-coast event in which volunteer divers and snorkelers document fish diversity and population trends.
"You have to assess the fish populations and know how they are moving to understand them. The end result is better management. Right now, we're doing a poor job worldwide," said Jean-Michel Cousteau, son of the underwater explorer Jacques Cousteau.
For the past four years, the count has been conducted off the coast of California only. This year, it is being expanded nationwide for the first time. Other study sites include protected waters in the Gulf of Mexico and the Florida Keys.
On Monday, volunteers led by Cousteau maneuvered through giant stalks of gold kelp to observe fish swimming in federally protected waters off the coast of Southern California.
Before plunging into the water, Cousteau stood on the deck of the boat and asked the 50 participants to join him in a moment of silence in memory of his father, who died June 25. He bowed his head and closed his eyes.
"I dedicate this dive to my dear, dear
wonderful father," Cousteau said. "I think we owe him for having opened this ocean world to us."
Cousteau, who lives in Santa Barbara, flew back from Paris, where his father died, to take part in the fish count.
But how were divers to know they weren't counting the same fish twice?
"As you move around, the likelihood of seeing the same fish will decrease. If everyone saw 10 black sea bass, we can say that's a fact with a high degree of certainty," said Ed Cassano, manager of the Channel Island National Marine Sanctuary, which covers 1,252 square nautical miles.
The count from July 1-14 is a joint effort of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and three nonprofit environmental organizations.
Event founder, Gary Davis, a scientist with the Channel Islands National Park Service, said that by using volunteers, organizers hope to spread the word about declining fish populations so that the public will get fired up about protecting them the same way they do for forests and deserts.
The ocean environment, Davis said, suffers from being out of sight and out of mind.
Claire Johnson, a 24-year-old volunteer from Santa Barbara, emerged from the water with a new appreciation for the deep.
"It was nice seeing the diversity of fish species," she said. "It's kind of neat because now I'll know what fish I'm looking at."
We recommend you bring your real I.D. to the trial.
We also recommend legal advice.
STUDENT
SENATE
Jo Hardesty,Director Legal Services for Students 864-5665 Burge Union
"NO COUPON SPECIALS" EVERYDAY
TWO-FERS THREE-FERS PARTY '10 CARRY-OUT
2-PIZZAS 3-PIZZAS 10-PIZZAS 1-PIZZA
1-TOPPINGS 1-TOPPING 1-TOPPING 1-TOPPING
2-DRINKS 3-DRINKS 1-DRINK
$9.75 $12.50 $32.50 $3.75
DELIVERY HOURS
Sun-Thurs 11am-2am
Fri-Sat 11am-3am
Lunch • Dinner • Late Night
1601 W. 23rd Southern Hills Center•Lawrence
DINE-IN AVAILABLE-WE ACCEPT CHECKS
Personal Freedom Machines
TERRAPLANE BICYCLES & GOODS
916 MASSE ST. LAWRENCE 841-642
TERRAPLANE @JUNO.COM
Tuesday and Thursday afternoons 4:00 to 6:30pm
Saturday mornings too...6:30 to 10:30am
Fresh locally produced edible-pod peas, onions, greens, broccoli, new potatoes, cut flowers, home baked breads, honey, jams, goat cheese, strawberries, and desserts for your dinner table.
Stop by on your way home.
842-9293,842-0759 Kansas Army National Guard
Truck Drivers, Mechanics, Cooks, Medical Specialists, Military Police, Supply, Administration, Aviation, Field Artillery and Armor Crewmen. Prior military service not required, we will train. Prior service may enter at last rank held up to E-6. No Basic Training for Prior Service! For more information, call today!
Between 10th and 11th on Vermont Street... at the bottom of the hill.
HELP WANTED PART-TIME (2 days a month-2 weeks a year Great pay and excellent benefits!
THE SANDBAR
117 E. 8TH STREET WIN PEARL EARRINGS! EVERY WEDNESDAY NIGHT!