Tick Lab at ODU

NEW ** Alpha-Gal Landscape Analysis Project

The Foundation for Food and Agriculture Research (FFAR), in collaboration with the Pork Checkoff and the Alpha-gal Alliance, has commissioned a research team led by Old Dominion University to complete a landscape analysis to better understand alpha-gal syndrome (AGS), a growing public health concern in the United States. (See attached press release for full story!)

Individuals or institutions interested in participating in or learning more about this work are encouraged to contact the team at [email protected].

April Updates!

As tick numbers start to pick up, the ODU tick team has been busy. Darian, Brian, Stephanie, and MyKenna participated in an outreach event at Tabb Middle School’s Science Expo, Sierra has been doing vegetation surveys at our various field sites, and MyKenna gave a talk at the 81st annual Northeast Fish and Wildlife conference.

Remember to keep up with tick check and other protective measures as the weather continues to warm up! 🦟🪲🕷️

ODU Tick Team did a great job at the Virginia Mosquito Control Association 79th Annual Conference. We took first, second, and fourth place in the student poster presentations. Great job team!!

Anyone in Pennsylvania?

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Want to learn more about ticks and their behavior? Dr. Holly Gaff was interviewed by Insect Shield. Take a look:

Understanding Ticks: Insights from Dr. Holly Gaff on Tick Behavior, Disease, and Protection Ticks are one of the most significant disease vectors in the United States, and yet, most people know surprisingly little about them. Misconceptions are widespread, like the idea that ticks fall from trees, while real scientific advances in tick modeling and prevention often go unnoticed. To separat...

Darian Dean did her MPH practicum with the Tick Team, and her work was highlighted by ODU.

ODU Student Links Flooding to Tick Decline By Amy Matzke-Fawcett For most students, a practicum is a final step toward graduation and a chance to gain hands-on experience in their field of study. For Darian Dean ‘22, it also meant turning her passion for public health into an unexpected research opportunity: tick borne illness.

Our recent paper on the emergence of babesiosis in the Mid-Atlantic has gotten a lot of press.

https://www.wavy.com/news/health/tick-borne-illness-moving-into-hampton-roads/

https://www.whro.org/environment/2025-06-09/a-rare-tick-borne-disease-has-started-spreading-into-virginia

https://www.pilotonline.com/2025/06/25/rare-tick-borne-illness-could-be-moving-south-into-virginia/

Tick-borne illness moving into Hampton Roads NORFOLK, Va. (WAVY) — If you’re already ticked off about the hot weather, wait until you hear about this — the tick-borne-illness, babesiosis, has landed in the Hampton Roads area, according …

The Tick Lab recently joined forces with a number of other tick researchers in the Mid-Atlantic Region to publish new work on the increase of babesiosis in our region. Here is a recent news article about the report:

A rare tick-borne disease has started spreading into Virginia The illness is caused by a parasite, which makes it different from many well-known tick-borne diseases, such as Lyme.

Holly is giving a lecture at the Virginia Living Museum on Tick Ecology in South Eastern Virginia

Yeah Sandy!!

Meet Shania Sanderson ODU Ph.D. Student in Ecology Women's History Feature At Old Dominion University graduates are writing their own story. Meet Shania Sanderson an Ecological Sciences doctoral candidate who wants to help merge her...