Other Common Names
Deer Tick, Bear Tick (per MDH)
Synonyms and other taxonomic changes
Ixodes scapularis Say, 1821
Ixodes dammini is a syn. of I. scapularis per Oliver et al (1993)
Explanation of Names
scapularis - Latin for 'of, having to do with the shoulder blade'
e. NA (TX-FL-ME-MN + Can & Mex) - Map
Lyme disease was first recognized in 1975 as a distinct clinical disorder (Steere et al. 1977) and is currently the most frequently reported vector-borne disease in the United States (CDC 1995). Transmission occurs by the bite of Ixodes ticks. In the US, the blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis Say affects the greatest number of people. (Patnaude and Mather 2013)
Center for Disease Control. 1995. Lyme disease-United States, 1994. Morbidity Mortality Weekly Report 44: 459-462.
Oliver JH, Owsley MR, Hutcheson HJ, James AM, Chen CS, Irby WS, Dotson EM, MClain DK 1993. Conspecificity of the ticks Ixodes scapularis and Ixodes dammini (Acari, Ixodidae) Journal of Medical Entomology 30: 54-63.
Steere AC, Taylor E, Malawista SE, Snydman DR, Shope RE, Andiman WA, Ross MR, Steele FM. 1977. Lyme arthritis: an epidemic of oligoarticular arthritis in children and adults in three Connecticut communities. Arthritis Rheumatism. 20: 7-17.
- Michael R. Patnaude, University of Florida, and Thomas N. Mather, University of Rhode Island, 2013
- Minnesota Department of Health