Orally delivered fipronil-laced bait reduces juvenile blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis) burdens on wild white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus).

While the topical acaricidal treatment of rodent pathogen reservoirs has been readily explored over the past several decades, oral systemic acaricidal treatment is only recently gaining traction as an alternative approach to the management of ticks and tick-borne pathogens. Recent laboratory tests have shown promise in the effectiveness of this systemic strategy against the blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis) and a Canadian field evaluation was recently published, but no recent field data from the United States yet exist. With this research, we sought to field deploy a commercially available fipronil-laced bait (Kaput® Flea Control Bait, Scimetrics LLC., Wellington, CO, USA; 0.005% fipronil; Environmental Protection Agency Reg. No. 72500-28), in an alternate use targeting white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus) to determine bait acceptance and potential impacts to juvenile I. scapularis burdens. Bait was readily accepted by wild P. leucopus and other rodent reservoirs. An ad libitum distribution strategy as well as placing smaller volumes of fipronil-laced bait within individual Sherman traps both resulted in significant reductions (57-94%) in juvenile I. scapularis burdens as compared to control over two years. The oral delivery of systemic acaricides shows promise in reduction of I. scapularis burdens on P. leucopus and should be further explored to determine effectiveness on host-seeking tick abundances, associated pathogen infection, and potentially incorporated into integrated tick management programs.

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