Illinois
More kinds of ticks, longer season as experts warn ‘Illinois is at the frontline’
As tick season approaches, experts warn that Illinois residents should be even more wary as the type of ticks in the state increases and the season lengthens.
Researchers discovered the Asian longhorned tick — an invasive species native to Japan, Korea and parts of China and Russia — in Illinois in April. First reported in the United States in 2017, the tick has since spread to 20 states.
“The role that this tick will play in the transmission of infections in humans is yet to be determined,” the Illinois Department of Public Health said in a recent statement.
But the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the tick is not likely to increase the spread of Lyme disease or cause a significant nuisance for humans. Instead, according to Mark Ernst, a veterinarian with the Illinois Department of Agriculture, the longhorned tick is most likely to affect cattle.
Though the longhorned tick generally targets cattle, Maureen Murray, assistant director of the Urban Wildlife Institute at Lincoln Park Zoo, said Chicago residents should be on the lookout for other types of ticks.
Tick patterns tend to vary significantly from year to year, Murray said, but one consistency has been a movement in tick season.
“We’re seeing less severe winters, which might lead to more ticks,” Murray said. “Fewer ticks die during the winter, and ticks can be active sooner in the spring, just because it warms up faster.”
Chris Stone, a medical entomologist at the Illinois Natural History Survey, said he suspects climate change is affecting the types of ticks in Illinois in a few different ways.
First, he said, warmer winters may be encouraging ticks to migrate. His lab has found the Gulf Coast tick, a tick that was once limited to the southern United States, across southern Illinois, he said. The tick can cause rickettsial disease, a type of Rocky Mountain spotted fever, in humans, which can cause fever, vomiting and even death.
“With particularly the winters getting milder, which is one of the main changes we’ve seen in Illinois over the past several decades, that could affect species and allow them to spread further north,” Stone said.
Murray urged Chicago residents not to fall for the common misconception that ticks are a rural problem. Chicagoans can come into contact with Gulf Coast ticks, deer ticks and other types of the disease-prone insects. Her institute has been doing surveys of Chicago green spaces since 2017 and has collected more than 1,000 ticks from different areas in the city over that time period.
“It’s really important to spend time outside and connect with nature in the city,” Murray said. “But we just want to make sure that people are aware that they could encounter ticks, and that there are straightforward steps for preventing tick bites.”
People should check themselves for ticks every time they exit a green space, she added.
Cattle producers also need to be vigilant, according to Ernst.
The longhorned tick can carry a disease that particularly affects pregnant cattle and calves, causing them to become anemic, weak and lethargic. There is no effective and approved treatment for the disease, Ernst said, so it can spread rapidly among surviving animals.
“We urge our cattle producers to check around their ears, under their tail, in their brisket areas, and look for large numbers of really small ticks,” Ernst said. “They’re only about the size of a sesame seed and can get up to the size of a pea when they’re engorged.”
Longhorned ticks also pose a particular threat because of their sheer numbers, he said.
“Female insects do not need a male in order to reproduce and can lay up to 2,000 eggs at a time,” Ernst said. “So it doesn’t take long for an area to become pretty well-saturated with this type of a tick.”
Becky Smith, an associate professor of epidemiology at the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine, teaches the public how to identify, prevent and treat tick-borne diseases.
Cattle have been affected by the disease in places like Australia, New Zealand and Pakistan, she said. So far, there has only been one affected cow in the United States, but scientists have proven ticks can carry the disease in labs in the United States, she said.
“The biggest concern is for the beef industry and for the sheep industry as well,” Smith said. “One female can produce thousands of eggs, and the real concern is if you get a really strong infestation, a calf can die from blood loss.”
Smith added that people should be particularly aware of the risks of any kind of tick bite.
“Ticks are expanding their range,” Smith said. “They’re moving into a lot of places, and Illinois is at the frontline of that. We’re getting more ticks everywhere. We’ve seen a tenfold increase in the number of tick-borne illnesses. It’s time to be aware.”
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Combined state and federal taxes would take more than 50% of the top-end income for 22,000 Illinois small businesses.
Proposals in the Illinois General Assembly could slam massive tax hikes onto small businesses, the state’s primary job creator historically and in the recovery from the COVID-19 downturn.
One measure would punish 22,020 Illinois small businesses with a huge increase in their marginal state income tax rate and create a top tax rate of nearly 50.3% for them, once all state and federal income taxes are factored in.
S-corporations and partnerships, which “pass-through” their business income to their owners, who pay taxes as individuals, would see their top marginal state income tax rate jump from 4.95% to 7.95%, a 61% hike.
That would happen because the legislation, House Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 21, adds a 3% income tax on income above $1 million. It is scheduled for a hearing April 23 at which it could pass out of committee and go to a potential full House vote.
Research has shown that an increase in the top marginal tax rate is associated with a decrease in entrepreneurs’ hiring activity and lower wages for their employees.
Illinois has one of the highest unemployment rates in the nation and among the slowest wage growth. These are exacerbated by some of the highest state and local tax burdens in the nation, including the second-highest property taxes and eighth-highest sales taxes.
In 2017 Illinois residents endured the largest permanent income tax hike in state history, when lawmakers increased the rate by 32%, from 3.75% to 4.95%.
Illinois already pushes out more businesses than virtually any other state. The “millionaire’s tax” could make the situation even worse. Illinoisans should reject this call for higher taxes on the state’s vital small business community.
Contact your state representative to stop the small business tax hike here.
SYCAMORE, Ill. – A Sycamore mother said she is still waiting for justice more than two years after her teenage son was stabbed to death.
The case is back in court this week, where a judge will consider a key request that could change how the case moves forward.
What we know:
A mother said her son’s life was cut short during a confrontation that turned deadly.
Heather Gerken said her 17-year-old son, Kaleb McCall, was stabbed during an incident in September 2023. She said Kaleb agreed to meet another teen for what he believed would be a fist fight while sticking up for a friend.
According to Gerken, the other teen, who was 15 at the time, pulled a knife and stabbed Kaleb in the chest. Kaleb later died from his injuries.
Gerken said a jury later found that teen guilty of second-degree murder after the defense argued he acted in self-defense.
Dig deeper:
The case is not over.
Gerken says the defendant’s attorneys are now trying to move the case out of adult court and into juvenile court. That decision could impact how the teen is ultimately sentenced.
What they’re saying:
Gerken said the legal process has been long and frustrating.
She said the case has stretched on for more than two and a half years and that ongoing court proceedings have made it difficult for her to grieve her son.
“He was everybody’s big brother,” Gerken said. “He had the biggest smile and the sweetest personality. He enjoyed fishing and being outside, and he was the best gift giver. He always got me flowers for every little holiday. Just a very thoughtful boy.”
Gerken also said the possibility of the case moving to juvenile court is especially upsetting, as she continues to push for what she believes is justice for her son.
“I don’t want anybody else’s child to die the way that my son died,” Gerken said. “Caleb is my whole world. I gave birth to him at 17 and he changed my life completely. He made me a better person. He taught me what real love truly is…And I just miss him so much more every day. And just knowing that he died the way he did. It makes me sick.”
What’s next:
The case returns to court Thursday morning.
A judge is expected to determine whether the case remains in adult court or is moved to juvenile court, a decision that could shape what happens next in the case.
The Source: The information in this article was reported by FOX Chicago’s Lauren Scafidi.
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