Lime-carrying mites found near a beach in California

“We were looking at beach scrubs, redwood forests, oak forests, etc. because everyone tends to see the same kind of place,” he said. “And everywhere I looked, I found almost all mites.”

According to Sarkeld, the most amazing discovery was the discovery of mites in coastal areas.

Studies have shown that some of the region’s major “reservoir” animals, or the known source of mite infection, are not common in coastal areas, so some were unexpected.

Researchers and experts focused on Lyme disease told The Washington Post that people generally consider Lyme disease-carrying mites to be in forest areas such as New England. Sarkeld’s research Published on friday The Journal of Applied and Environmental Microbiology emphasizes that these mites are far more widespread than they have been realized.

Lyme disease is transmitted by being bitten by infected black-footed mites. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.. It is not known exactly how many people have Lyme disease each year because it is difficult to diagnose, but according to the CDC, health insurance records estimate that nearly 480,000 people have Lyme disease each year. I am being diagnosed and treated.

Recent studies did not show that mites were crawling around the beach itself, Salkeld said. Rather, they were found in vegetation growing near beaches and coastal paths — “low brushes, often it’s a kind of thorn.”

Officials from the Bay Area Lime Foundation, who funded the study, described the “coastal scrubs” as being on the grasslands of the dunes that people pass through to get to the beach, or on the cliffs at the top of the hills. Beach.

“If you go to those coastal cliffs, you just get that scrub, and that’s the kind of habitat we’ve begun to explore,” Sarkeld said. “I don’t think we were expecting to find many mites, but we did, and we found a large number of mites, and they are infected with the disease. “

“It’s a good study and points out that it’s geographically important,” said John Ocott, director of the Johns Hopkins University of Lyme Disease Clinical Research Center.

Notable, Ocott, who was not involved in the study, noted that tick research focuses on forest areas, even within California, where habitats vary widely across the coast.

“There is quite a bit of research in the classic oak forest, but no one has seen Chaparral. It’s a crude one on a hill before hitting the sea,” he says. I did. He said the lack of research in such areas may be due to the animals in known reservoirs not actually living there.

It is unclear which animals in these coastal habitats are infected with mites, Sarkeld said, a problem that requires further study by ecologists.

One point from the study is that “the more you look, the more mites you find everywhere, and everywhere you find disease-infected mites.”

Eva Sapi, a professor at the University of New Haven and director of the school’s Lyme disease research program, called Sarkeld’s work “very eye-opening” and said there should be more unconventional tick research. Stated.

“Go to beaches and other places where you don’t think there are ticks, and you’ll find them,” said Sapi, who was also not involved in the survey.

Ocot and Sapi said the study helped raise awareness among people who wouldn’t check for ticks unless they were in the woods, and doctors and diagnoses treating patients who may have been bitten by ticks. He said it would be useful to the doctor.

Linda Jumpa, secretary-general of the Bay Area Lime Foundation, said ticks were “exploring” in the grasslands and “waiting for humans and dogs to come in, they would jump in and ride.”

She suggested that when people return home from forest areas or beach trails, all the clothes they wear should be tumble-dried for 20 minutes to kill mites. Next, they need to check their bodies for mites — they often get caught in the lower arms, groin, head, behind the knees, or behind the ears, Jumper said.

Larger adult ticks — this CDC says It’s generally the size of a sesame seed — it’s easy to feel and may look like a mole or leather tag, Giampa added. Small larval mites can be difficult to detect.

“I’m not trying to ruin someone’s vacation or outdoor time,” Sarkeld added, “you should always be aware that most habitats in California have mites.” ..

“Just be careful and get rid of them as soon as possible,” he said.