Effects of woody plant encroachment on abundance of multiple tick species in the U.S. Great Plains.

ABSTRACT: Vector-borne diseases are increasing in prevalence, posing a risk to 80% of the human population worldwide. In the United States, tick-borne diseases account for 75% of all nationally reported vector-borne disease cases. As the distribution of medically important ticks and tick-borne diseases increases, it is crucial to understand the factors driving their expansion. Changes in land cover are a known driver of vector-borne disease emergence and prevalence. In the U.S. Great Plains, a dominant form of land cover change affecting vectors and vector-borne diseases is woody plant encroachment (WPE), the expansion of trees and shrubs into grassland ecosystems due to fire suppression and other anthropogenic factors. In this study, we examined whether WPE by eastern redcedar (Juniperus virginiana

SUBMITTER: Propst J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12527199 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature