DDT to Control Wood Ticks

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Abstract
Expts. on the effectiveness of DDT for the control of the American dog tick, Dermacenter variabilis, were made in roadside plots 1 acre in area. At a dosage of 2.5 lb. of DDT per acre control was uniformly satisfactory; at 1 to 2 lb. per acre control was satisfactory in some plots but not in others. Apparently the dosage required to insure effective control in every instance would be > 2 lb., but probably not more than 3 lb. of DDT per acre. In woodland plots 0.5 to 1 acre in area nymphs and adults of the lone star tick, Amblyomma americanum, were controlled throughout the season of activity, as long as 125 days, with 1 lb. of DDT per acre. This dosage was effective whether applied in 50 or 100 gal. of water. Sprays prepd. with 3 solvents[long dash]soluble pine oil, xylene, and AR-60[long dash]were almost equally effective and a dust was only slightly less effective. The season of larval activity began about a month after the last treatments were applied, and clusters of live larvae were collected in the treated plots. Airplane applications of DDT were less effective than ground applications against the lone star tick, the only species present in numbers. Reductions in tick abundance developed more slowly than in the case of the ground applications, but after 6 weeks control was about 85% complete in most of the plots. Spray applications of about 1 lb. of DDT per acre gave excellent control of the black-legged tick, Ixodes scapular is, in roadside plots for periods as long as 102 days.

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