Join us for a tick-borne illness workshop with Larry Dapsis, Cape Cod Cooperative Extension Entomologist. Lyme Disease is the most prevalent infectious disease in Massachusetts and is now considered to be a public health crisis.  In addition to Lyme, deer ticks can carry the pathogens which cause Babesiosis, Anaplasmosis, and Relapsing Fever, all of which can be very serious and are on the increase. This program will review the basic life cycle and ecology of deer ticks, the incidence rates and distribution of tick-borne illnesses, and a database under development on the infection rates of ticks.  A three point protection plan will be presented:  Protect Yourself, Protect Your Yard, and Protect your Pet.  Tick-Borne Diseases are preventable.
Larry Dapsis has been an Entomologist since age five.  He earned a B.S.  in Environmental Science & Biology at Fitchburg State University, and an M.S. in Entomology at the University of Massachusetts – Amherst.  He has thirty-five years of professional pest management experience, including vegetables, cranberries, and household insects. Mr. Dapsis joined the Cape Cod Cooperative Extension in 2011 as Deer Tick Project Coordinator and Entomologist, and is a member of the Barnstable County Task Force on Lyme and other Tick-Borne Diseases.