62 Nebraskaland • May 2021
MIXED BAG
When you're participating in community science —
gathering data on the natural world for scientists to use
— often you're observing something fun, like monarchs or
bumble bees. Usually not parasites.
"Ticks are kind of a hard sell," acknowledged Louise
Lynch-O'Brien, an assistant professor of insect biology at
the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. She and colleague Jody
Green lead the community science project Tick Tag Go, with
the goal of establishing baseline data of tick distributions in
the state.
While ticks seem like an unlikely subject, the data such a
project can gather is important. Tick populations are shifting
and new species are being identified in Nebraska, so having
records of tick sightings is critical in understanding what
species are found where. In the scientific community, there's
little time or resources for monitoring ticks, so the public can
be a big help, Lynch-O'Brien said.
Unlike your average community science project, Tick Tag
Go involves passive surveillance. "That just means, if they're
out and about — hiking, walking their dog, hunting, doing
their normal activities — and they come across ticks, then
we're asking them to share those interactions and that data,"
Lynch-O'Brien said.
To do so, you simply log on to the iNaturalist app or website,
and share a photo of the tick and information about the
encounter on the Tick Tag Go page. Depending on the photo,
the tick species can then be identifi ed, and the entry is added
to a statewide map showing all tick sightings for the project.
Beyond learning more about Nebraska's ticks, the founders
of Tick Tag Go have another goal: public awareness. They
want people to still go out and enjoy the outdoors, but also
be aware of the presence of ticks, know about the diseases
they spread, and know how to remove ticks properly. Ticks
should be removed with tweezers, Lynch-O'Brien said, and
tick checks are also important.
By logging tick encounters on iNaturalist, participants
will also have data they can keep for their personal health
records.
"People who join the project won't just be helping us,
they'll be helping other Nebraskans and then potentially
themselves, too," Lynch-O'Brien said.
To participate, join iNaturalist and submit photos,
preferably on the Tick Tag Go page. To learn more about Tick
Tag Go, visit ticktaggo.unl.edu.
TICK TAG GO
By Renae Blum
American dog tick (Dermacentor variabilis) in Chadron, Dawes County. JUSTIN HAAG, NEBRASKALAND
