Turning Up the Heat on Ticks
Recorded Mar. 5, 2026
Learn about the power of prescribed fire and its impact on tick populations! Tick-borne illnesses are a major source of morbidity and mortality. Such diseases thus pose a significant – and, unfortunately, growing – threat to public health in the region. Prescribed burning may be able to contribute to efforts to reduce the burden posed by such illnesses by moderating the size of tick population. During this webinar, we will discuss how prescribed fire can directly and indirectly lead to such tick mortality and consider how such reductions could reduce the chance of people encountering ticks that are infected with pathogenic microorganisms. We will also explore how fire management influences other important aspects of tick-borne disease ecology, such as fire effects on wildlife hosts. Finally, we will discuss how fire management practices could be operationalized through a One Health-informed perspective in pursuit of such benefits. This session will be recorded and posted to this webpage soon.
PRESENTER
Sam Gilvarg, M.S., NREMT
Ph.D. Student, Applied Forest & Fire Ecology Lab, SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
Sam Gilvarg is a Ph.D. student in Dr. Andrew Vander Yacht’s Applied Forest and Fire Ecology Laboratory at SUNY College of Environmental Science & Forestry. Gilvarg’s research primarily explores how the “One Health” approach can be employed to address problems that exist at the interface of human wellbeing, animal health, and environmental conservation. Currently he is focused on studying how fire management interacts with tick populations in the Atlantic Coastal Pine Barrens. Gilvarg holds a B.A. (Environmental Studies & History) from Gettysburg College and a M.S. (Conservation Medicine) from the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University. He has previously worked as a Fire Effects Monitor with the National Park Service at Sequoia-Kings Canyon NPs, Shenandoah National Park, and Cape Cod National Seashore. He is currently affiliated as an AD with the Green Mountain and Finger Lakes National Forests.
TARGET AUDIENCE
This workshop is designed for LIFE members, nature enthusiasts, and landowners.
PROGRAM PARTNER
RESOURCES
SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry
Prescribed Fire for Forest Management series
Fire University podcast from University of Florida Game Lab