Vector-borne diseases on Fire Island, New York (Fire Island National Seashore science synthesis paper)
Ginsberg HS. 2005. Vector-borne diseases on Fire Island, New York (Fire Island National Seashore science synthesis paper). Technical Report NPS/NER/NRTR—2005/018. National Park Service, Department of the Interior
This paper discusses eleven tick-borne and five mosquito-borne pathogens that are known to occur at Fire Island National Seashore, or could potentially occur. The potential for future occurrence, and ecological factors that influence occurrence, are assessed for each disease. Lyme disease is the most common vector-borne disease on Fire Island. The Lyme spirochete, Borrelia burgdorferi, is endemic in local tick and wildlife populations. Public education, personal precautions against tick bite, and prompt treatment of early-stage infections can help manage the risk of Lyme disease on Fire Island. The pathogens that cause Human Monocytic Ehrlichiosis and Tularemia have been isolated from ticks or wildlife on Fire Island, and conditions suggest that other tick-borne diseases (including Babesiosis, Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever, and Human Granulocytic Ehrlichiosis) might also occur, but these are far less common than Lyme disease, if present.