Deer help to fuel Martha's Vineyard's worrisome increase in all varieties of ticks. The menu of illnesses that ticks transmit poses a threat to public health on Martha’s Vineyard. Unchecked, the increasing risk of contracting Alpha-gal syndrome (AGS), Lyme disease, Anaplasmosis, Ehrlichiosis, Babesiosis, Powassan Fever, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, and Tularemia may affect the Island’s seasonal economy.

Watching a tick crawl up my sleeve and self-destruct is very satisfying.