Ticks are beginning to reappear in British Columbia’s moose population due to the up-and-down weather we’ve seen this winter.
As a result, the BC Wildlife Health Program is conducting their third annual public survey to observe the amount of hair, weight, and blood loss.
“The ticks tend to have a chance for survival when we see those late winters, those warm falls, and with the snow melting away earlier and earlier, ticks have a better chance for survival,” says government wildlife contractor Dustin Walsh.
NEW: Input sought on moose winter tick survey, https://t.co/HjQsLijisq
— BC Government News (@BCGovNews) January 19, 2017
These tick infestations are said to have no health threats to humans, but for the almost 200,000 moose spread across the province, it can take a lot of them… literally and figuratively.
“The ticks can also lead to some serious energy expenditures for the moose at times when energy can be difficult to come by, and moose can lose up to about 40 litres of blood during the peak times in the winter.”
Walsh says there can be tens of thousands of ticks on one animal alone and the more they scratch, the more hair they’ll lose..
He adds in 2016, there were more than 120 people that signed up for the survey; if you wish to take part, you can click here.