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WHY ARE TICKS DANGEROUS
With more and more people spending time outdoors fishing, camping and, in the fall, hunting, the chances of having an encounter with a tick are at their highest. And nothing about those encounters can be good.
Strat Donnell of Hampstead, N.C., ran into a bad tick — more than likely a lone star tick — several years ago. A veteran turkey hunter and on-and-off turkey hunting guide, Donnell got sick in 2012. He was suddenly stricken by digestive problems, and after several procedures and tests it was determined that he had a condition called achalasia, where the two-way valve between the esophagus and stomach ceases to function properly. After losing 40 pounds over a year, he was diagnosed with an allergy to meat, and doctors put two and two together upon reading a study from two professors at the University of Virginia connecting meat allergies to the bites of the lone star tick — a tiny blood-sucker that has also been identified as the transmitter of the heartland virus, a disease that has surfaced from Tennessee across the Midwest. After another surgical procedure, Donnell can eat anything except beef without any repercussions.
“Do not be timid on getting a blood test if you have had or have any such symptoms,” Donnell said. “And just because you have no symptoms today does not mean you can’t earn a trip to the kitchen sink after the next tick finishes snacking on you.”
Rocky Mountain spotted fever and Lyme disease are by far the most-prevalent tick-borne diseases. And more people are at risk of being infected with that debilitating ailment in today’s warmer environment, according to Dr. Doug Inkley, writing in a National Wildlife Federation report.
“Most of the ticks that bite and infect humans with (Lyme) disease are nymphs, which are most active in the summer months when people and pets are also most active,” Inkley wrote.
Fortunately, tick-borne diseases and encounters with ticks can be prevented. In most cases, a tick must have latched onto your skin for at least 24 hours to transmit disease, so a quick daily check while showering or bathing can solve that problem.
Even better is the use of insect repellents. The Center for Disease Control recommends using repellents that contain at least 20 to 30 percent DEET on exposed skin and clothing, or to treat clothing with products that contain permethrin.
Specifically, make sure boots, shoes, socks and pants are treated, as ticks have to make contact at ground level before travelling to the spots where they intend to grab hold.
And make sure your pet’s tick and flea prevention is up to date.
The spotted lanternfly is a planthopper that is indigenous to parts of Southern China, Taiwan, and Vietnam, and has spread invasively to Japan, South Korea, the Amazon and the United States. Although it has two pairs of wings, it jumps more than it flies. The spotted lanternfly causes serious damage including oozing sap, wilting, leaf curling and dieback in trees, vines, crops and many other types of plants. In addition to plant damage, when spotted lanternflies feed, they excrete a sugary substance, called honeydew, that encourages the growth of black sooty mold. Please look up this insect on the internet for photos and added info.
The emerald ash borer, also known by the acronym EAB, is a green buprestid or jewel beetle native to north-eastern Asia that feeds on ash species. Females lay eggs in bark crevices on ash trees, and larvae feed underneath the bark of ash trees to emerge as adults in one to two years. The Emerald Ash Borer (Agrilus planipennis or EAB) is responsible for the destruction of tens of millions of ash trees in 30 states. Native to Asia, it likely arrived in the United States hidden in wood packing materials. The first U.S. identification of Emerald Ash Borer was in southeastern Michigan in 2002. Please look up this insect on the internet for photos and added info.
Please remember to close and lock the clubhouse and front gate if you are the last person there. Too often they are left open. If you do lock them up, it will save the club the expense of installing monitoring devices to record users. Our situation is that if left open, our club could be ransacked, burned, or a non-member may be injured and sue us. Thanks.
Please do not throw live ammo in the burn barrels, they explode when burned scaring the hell out of people if not the possibility of a bullet wounding or killing someone. As a matter of fact, what are we doing throwing any ammo (live, missfires, used cartridges, etc.) in a burn barrel? We have modified ammo boxes at each location to accept missfires, live rounds, etc. Please use these boxes.
Shoot safely and have fun!
