While farmers across the area continue to battle extreme drought conditions, there is a growing concern among livestock producers about the recent spread of the Asian long horned tick. The Asian long horned tick is an invasive parasite that was first spotted in the United States in 2017 in New Jersey. It has slowly spread across the country since then and has made its way to Arkansas…
Kevin Van Pelt, agriculture agent with the Conway County Extension Service, says the tick can be deadly to livestock if it goes undetected…
“From what I understand the ticks mostly prefer wildlife, and that’s how we believe they’ve been getting transported,” Van Pelt. “They’re bad on cattle. They multiply in such numbers that thousands have been found on one animal. That number of ticks alone on animal can kill them and has killed them…”…