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Potential for Control of Deer Ticks Using the Sterile Insect Technique by Thomas Kirby '21

Wed, May 12th, 2021
1:00 pm
- 1:40 pm

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Potential for Control of Deer Ticks Using the Sterile Insect Technique by Thomas Kirby ’21, Mathematics Senior Thesis Defense, Wednesday, May 12, 1 – 1:40 pm, live talk can be accessed at https://williams.zoom.us/j/97617951870.

Abstract:  The deer tick, Ixodes scapularis, is a vector for numerous human diseases, including Lyme, anaplasmosis, and babesiosis.  Concern is rising in the US and abroad as the population and range of this species grow and new diseases emerge. I consider the potential for control of I. scapularis using the Sterile Insect Technique, which acts by reducing net fertility through release of sterile males.  I construct a population model with density-dependent and -independent growth, migration, and an Allee effect (decline of the population when it is too small), and use this model to simulate sterile tick release in both single- and multi-patch frameworks.  Results suggest that thorough distribution of the sterile ticks over the control area is critical for efficiency, and that an efficient control program will typically take four to eight years, which is a bit slow but nevertheless encouraging.

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