Williams Scott C, Ward Jeffrey S, Worthley Thomas E, Stafford Kirby C
The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, Department of Forestry and Horticulture, New Haven, CT 06504, USA.
Environ Entomol. 2009 Aug;38(4):977-84. doi: 10.1603/022.038.0404.
In many Connecticut forests with an overabundance of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus Zimmermann), Japanese barberry (Berberis thunbergii DC) has become the dominant understory shrub, which may provide a habitat favorable to blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis Say) and white-footed mouse (Peromyscus leucopus Rafinesque) survival. To determine mouse and larval tick abundances at three replicate sites over 2 yr, mice were trapped in unmanipulated dense barberry infestations, areas where barberry was controlled, and areas where barberry was absent. The number of feeding larval ticks/mouse was recorded. Adult and nymphal ticks were sampled along 200-m draglines in each treatment, retained, and were tested for Borrelia burgdorferi (Johnson, Schmid, Hyde, Steigerwalt, and Brenner) presence. Total first-captured mouse counts did not differ between treatments. Mean number of feeding larval ticks per mouse was highest on mice captured in dense barberry. Adult tick densities in dense barberry were higher than in both controlled barberry and no barberry areas. Ticks sampled from full barberry infestations and controlled barberry areas had similar infection prevalence with B. burgdorferi the first year. In areas where barberry was controlled, infection prevalence was reduced to equal that of no barberry areas the second year of the study. Results indicate that managing Japanese barberry will have a positive effect on public health by reducing the number of B. burgdorferi-infected blacklegged ticks that can develop into motile life stages that commonly feed on humans.
在康涅狄格州许多白尾鹿（弗吉尼亚鹿，学名：Odocoileus virginianus Zimmermann）数量过多的森林中，日本小檗（学名：Berberis thunbergii DC）已成为主要的林下灌木，这可能为黑脚蜱（肩突硬蜱，学名：Ixodes scapularis Say）和白足鼠（白足鼠属，学名：Peromyscus leucopus Rafinesque）的生存提供有利栖息地。为了确定在两年时间里三个重复地点的小鼠和幼虫蜱虫数量，在未处理的茂密日本小檗侵染区、日本小檗得到控制的区域以及没有日本小檗的区域设置陷阱捕捉小鼠。记录每只小鼠身上正在取食的幼虫蜱虫数量。在每个处理区域沿着200米的拖网采集成年蜱虫和若蜱，留存后检测是否存在伯氏疏螺旋体（学名：Borrelia burgdorferi ，由Johnson、Schmid、Hyde、Steigerwalt和Brenner发现）。首次捕获的小鼠总数在各处理之间没有差异。在茂密日本小檗中捕获的小鼠身上，每只小鼠身上正在取食的幼虫蜱虫平均数量最高。茂密日本小檗中的成年蜱虫密度高于日本小檗得到控制的区域和没有日本小檗的区域。第一年，从完全被日本小檗侵染的区域和日本小檗得到控制的区域采集的蜱虫感染伯氏疏螺旋体的患病率相似。在研究的第二年，在日本小檗得到控制的区域，感染患病率降至与没有日本小檗的区域相同。结果表明，对日本小檗进行管理将对公共卫生产生积极影响，减少能够发育为通常以人类为食的活动生命阶段的感染伯氏疏螺旋体的黑脚蜱数量。
