"A new invasive tick species capable of transmitting several severe diseases is spreading in the United States, posing an emerging threat to human and animal health, according to a pair of reports issued Thursday.

The Asian longhorned tick is the first invasive tick to arrive in the United States in about 80 years. It’s native to eastern China, Japan, the Russian Far East and the Korean Peninsula and is now also established in Australia and New Zealand.

In August of last year, it was discovered on a 12-year-old pet Icelandic sheep in western New Jersey. Since then, the tick has been found in Arkansas, Connecticut, Maryland, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia. The species has been found on pets, livestock, wildlife and people. So far, though, there is no evidence that the tick has spread pathogens to humans, domestic animals or wildlife in the United States, according to a report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention."

Lena H. Sun reports for the Washington Post November 29, 2018. [2]