* . *
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact
Sunday, July 6, 2025
Earth-News
  • Home
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    Magicians and Battlebots light up Las Vegas entertainment scene – KSNV

    Magicians and Battlebots Take Las Vegas Entertainment by Storm

    Max-Matching Entertainments & Longhua District form partnership for new entertainment complex – Blooloop

    Max-Matching Entertainments and Longhua District Unite to Launch Thrilling New Entertainment Complex

    Kennedy Publishing, MGA Entertainment Launch Yummiland Magazine – License Global

    Kennedy Publishing, MGA Entertainment Launch Yummiland Magazine – License Global

    MAY HER SOUL REST IN PEACE 🙏 Veteran entertainment columnist and talent manager Lolit Solis has passed away. She was 78 years old. https://tinyurl.com/6kumarkx | LatestChika.com – Facebook

    Beloved Entertainment Icon Lolit Solis Passes Away at 78 – A Life Remembered with Love and Respect 🙏

    Neil Young Plays Rare Full-Band ‘Ambulance Blues’ With The Chrome Hearts – Yahoo

    Neil Young Stuns Fans with Rare Full-Band Performance of ‘Ambulance Blues’ Alongside The Chrome Hearts

    BTS Announce Their Big Return and Yes, They Already Have Some Major Plans in the Works – Yahoo

    BTS Announce Their Big Return and Yes, They Already Have Some Major Plans in the Works – Yahoo

  • General
  • Health
  • News

    Cracking the Code: Why China’s Economic Challenges Aren’t Shaking Markets, Unlike America’s” – Bloomberg

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Science
  • Sports
  • Technology
    Column: Teach kupuna new technology skills – Honolulu Star-Advertiser

    Empowering Kupuna: Unlocking New Technology Skills for a Connected Future

    EIFO invests $5 million in D3, the Ukraine-focused defence technology venture fund – sUAS News

    EIFO Pledges $5 Million to Supercharge Ukraine-Focused Defense Technology Fund

    New Technology for Water Efficiency and Working with Mexico on Screwworm – AG INFORMATION NETWORK OF THE WEST

    Revolutionary Water Efficiency Technology and Cross-Border Collaboration to Defeat Screwworm

    Environmental cognitive distance, R&D capability distance, and supply chain green technology innovation – Nature

    Bridging Gaps: How Environmental and R&D Differences Drive Green Technology Innovation in Supply Chains

    LG Innotek CEO Moon Hyuksoo: “Our Next-gen Substrate Technology Will Change the Industry Paradigm” – TechPowerUp

    LG Innotek CEO Moon Hyuksoo: “Our Next-Gen Substrate Technology Will Revolutionize the Industry” Revolutionizing the Future: LG Innotek’s CEO Unveils Game-Changing Next-Gen Substrate Technology

    Inspira Technologies Secures Landmark $22.5M Deal: Major Revenue Breakthrough After FDA Clearance – Stock Titan

    Inspira Technologies Secures Landmark $22.5M Deal: Major Revenue Breakthrough After FDA Clearance – Stock Titan

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Business
  • Entertainment
    Magicians and Battlebots light up Las Vegas entertainment scene – KSNV

    Magicians and Battlebots Take Las Vegas Entertainment by Storm

    Max-Matching Entertainments & Longhua District form partnership for new entertainment complex – Blooloop

    Max-Matching Entertainments and Longhua District Unite to Launch Thrilling New Entertainment Complex

    Kennedy Publishing, MGA Entertainment Launch Yummiland Magazine – License Global

    Kennedy Publishing, MGA Entertainment Launch Yummiland Magazine – License Global

    MAY HER SOUL REST IN PEACE 🙏 Veteran entertainment columnist and talent manager Lolit Solis has passed away. She was 78 years old. https://tinyurl.com/6kumarkx | LatestChika.com – Facebook

    Beloved Entertainment Icon Lolit Solis Passes Away at 78 – A Life Remembered with Love and Respect 🙏

    Neil Young Plays Rare Full-Band ‘Ambulance Blues’ With The Chrome Hearts – Yahoo

    Neil Young Stuns Fans with Rare Full-Band Performance of ‘Ambulance Blues’ Alongside The Chrome Hearts

    BTS Announce Their Big Return and Yes, They Already Have Some Major Plans in the Works – Yahoo

    BTS Announce Their Big Return and Yes, They Already Have Some Major Plans in the Works – Yahoo

  • General
  • Health
  • News

    Cracking the Code: Why China’s Economic Challenges Aren’t Shaking Markets, Unlike America’s” – Bloomberg

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Trump’s Narrow Window to Spread the Truth About Harris

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    Israel-Gaza war live updates: Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh assassinated in Iran, group says

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    PAP Boss to Niger Delta Youths, Stay Away from the Protest

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Court Restricts Protests In Lagos To Freedom, Peace Park

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Fans React to Jazz Jennings’ Inspiring Weight Loss Journey

    Trending Tags

    • Trump Inauguration
    • United Stated
    • White House
    • Market Stories
    • Election Results
  • Science
  • Sports
  • Technology
    Column: Teach kupuna new technology skills – Honolulu Star-Advertiser

    Empowering Kupuna: Unlocking New Technology Skills for a Connected Future

    EIFO invests $5 million in D3, the Ukraine-focused defence technology venture fund – sUAS News

    EIFO Pledges $5 Million to Supercharge Ukraine-Focused Defense Technology Fund

    New Technology for Water Efficiency and Working with Mexico on Screwworm – AG INFORMATION NETWORK OF THE WEST

    Revolutionary Water Efficiency Technology and Cross-Border Collaboration to Defeat Screwworm

    Environmental cognitive distance, R&D capability distance, and supply chain green technology innovation – Nature

    Bridging Gaps: How Environmental and R&D Differences Drive Green Technology Innovation in Supply Chains

    LG Innotek CEO Moon Hyuksoo: “Our Next-gen Substrate Technology Will Change the Industry Paradigm” – TechPowerUp

    LG Innotek CEO Moon Hyuksoo: “Our Next-Gen Substrate Technology Will Revolutionize the Industry” Revolutionizing the Future: LG Innotek’s CEO Unveils Game-Changing Next-Gen Substrate Technology

    Inspira Technologies Secures Landmark $22.5M Deal: Major Revenue Breakthrough After FDA Clearance – Stock Titan

    Inspira Technologies Secures Landmark $22.5M Deal: Major Revenue Breakthrough After FDA Clearance – Stock Titan

    Trending Tags

    • Nintendo Switch
    • CES 2017
    • Playstation 4 Pro
    • Mark Zuckerberg
No Result
View All Result
Earth-News
No Result
View All Result
Home Science

Ticks can ‘fly,’ a ‘shocking’ discovery

July 12, 2023
in Science
Ticks can ‘fly,’ a ‘shocking’ discovery
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

Animals

Ticks can’t jump. But thanks to the forces of static electricity, sometimes, the arachnids can soar through the air, a new study says.

ByJason Bittel

Published July 11, 2023

• 5 min read

In news absolutely no one wants to hear, scientists have just discovered that ticks can fly short distances through the air, thanks to the gravity-defying forces of static electricity.

These arachnids are parasites, which means they cannot survive without drinking the blood of larger animals.

“Finding that host is kind of the most important moment in their life,” says Sam England, a biologist and postdoctoral researcher at Berlin’s Natural History Museum.

At the same time, ticks have a problem. They can’t jump, and they can be extremely tiny—sometimes no larger than a poppyseed on a breakfast muffin.

On top of this, many tick species are sedentary, which means they climb a blade of grass and wait for their host, hooked leg outstretched. When a deer, sheep, or even mouse wanders by, the tick must latch on in an instant. (How parasites keep our ecosystems together.)

But with static electricity as a secret sidekick, it seems some ticks may get an extra boost in reaching their hosts, according to a recent study in the journal Current Biology.

Using wild-caught castor bean ticks (Ixodes ricinus), whose females are a significant vector for Lyme disease transmission in Europe, England and his co-authors showed that one-millimeter-size tick nymphs held up by forceps could shoot their bodies several centimeters through the air when exposed to static electricity.

“We saw it immediately,” says England, whose study was completed as a Ph.D. student at the University of Bristol in the United Kingdom. “That’s probably the first and last time that’s ever going to happen to me in science—an experiment works literally the first time.” 

With better knowledge of how these animals attach to hosts, England believes the discovery could yield a new generation of anti-tick sprays or tick-repellant outdoor materials.

How static electricity makes ticks “fly”

As animals travel through the grass, sand, and even air, the friction of their movements creates electrical charges, explains England. They’re either positive (carried by protons), or negative (carried by electrons). “And if they’re the opposite polarity, they’ll be attracted to each other. And if they’re the same polarity, they’ll be repelled from each other.”

Many of us know static electricity as what happens when you rub a balloon on your head, causing your hair to stand upright.

With an object as small as a tick, those same electrical forces can be enough to lift the parasite off the ground entirely. (Learn how some ticks make “cement” to attach to your skin.)

In the lab, scientists created friction by rubbing a dried rabbit foot on a plastic sheet of acrylic, creating opposing charges on both materials. They then held the ticks in stainless steel forceps at varying distances from either the rabbit foot or acrylic. Once the forceps released, the team watched in awe as all the nymphs vaulted up toward the charged surfaces.

Interestingly, the scientists found the ticks could launch through the air when exposed to both positive and negative charges, suggesting that these natural forces overwhelm whichever charge the tick has on its own body. The experiments also showed that a tick can move through the air vertically, which is more difficult than horizontally—the more typical direction for a tick in search of a host.

“Basically, attraction always wins, and they get pulled up,” England says.

While the current study focused on tick nymphs, the forces in play here would also work for adult ticks, as well as similarly sized animals, such as lice or mites. (Read how spiders can fly for hundreds of miles.)

In fact, another recent study found evidence that nematodes can use static charge to zoom onto bumblebees, which they use to hitch rides to new areas.

“So their study combined with ours really does make the point that it could be quite a widespread phenomenon,” says England.

Ticks wanted?

Maria Diuk-Wasser, a disease ecologist at Columbia University in New York, has an unusual job: She actually seeks out ticks.

“Us tick collectors are always looking for materials that collect more ticks, which is the opposite of what most people would want,” she says. (Read how to keep ticks out of your backyard.)

To collect ticks for research, Diuk-Wasser and her colleagues drag corduroy sheets across vegetation. However, the new study has her wondering if another material more prone to static might vacuum up greater numbers of the parasites she seeks.

Diuk-Wasser says that ticks traveling by way of static electricity is “unexpected” and “quite cool.”

“I’m not sure they’ve evolved to use this as a strategy,” she says, “but it’s something that works in their favor, let’s say.”

Likewise, Diuk-Wasser says it’s unclear if the ticks can sense electrical charges, or if they’re just getting lucky.

“We know really very little about how they sense the host, and what that range is, especially,” she says. “It’s definitely possible. But I think it’s worth exploring further.”

>>> Read full article>>>
Copyright for syndicated content belongs to the linked Source : National Geographic – https://www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/flying-ticks-static-electricity-diseases

Tags: scienceShockingticks
Previous Post

From iPads to Ring Doorbells, These Are the Best Amazon Prime Day Tech Deals Right Now

Next Post

How taro is eaten around the world

Column: Teach kupuna new technology skills – Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Empowering Kupuna: Unlocking New Technology Skills for a Connected Future

July 6, 2025
Ben Shelton’s sister booed by Wimbledon crowd when job revealed – Yahoo Sports

Wimbledon Crowd Booes Ben Shelton’s Sister Following Shocking Job Reveal

July 6, 2025
New book digs into Indigenous cuisine through archaeology, culture, ecology – Gander Newsroom

Unveiling Indigenous Cuisine: Exploring the Rich Tapestry of Archaeology, Culture, and Ecology

July 6, 2025
BANG! James Webb telescope catches stray galaxies in the Bullet Cluster: Space photo of the week – Live Science

BANG! James Webb Telescope Unveils Breathtaking Image of Stray Galaxies in the Bullet Cluster

July 6, 2025
How Do You Teach Computer Science in the A.I. Era? – The New York Times

Unlocking Success: Mastering Computer Science Education in the Age of A.I

July 6, 2025
If you want to be younger looking in 60 days, start practicing these 8 daily habits – VegOut

If you want to be younger looking in 60 days, start practicing these 8 daily habits – VegOut

July 6, 2025
Real Madrid vs Borussia Dortmund 3-2: FIFA Club World Cup – as it happened – Al Jazeera

Real Madrid vs Borussia Dortmund 3-2: FIFA Club World Cup – as it happened – Al Jazeera

July 6, 2025

Israel’s economy can’t survive a long war with Iran – and Trump knows it – Middle East Eye

July 6, 2025
The long-term health risks as extreme heat becomes a new normal – PBS

Uncovering the Silent, Long-Term Health Risks of Life in Extreme Heat

July 6, 2025
Trump Says He Will Start Talks With China on TikTok Deal – The New York Times

Trump Says He Will Start Talks With China on TikTok Deal – The New York Times

July 6, 2025

Categories

Archives

July 2025
MTWTFSS
 123456
78910111213
14151617181920
21222324252627
28293031 
« Jun    
Earth-News.info

The Earth News is an independent English-language daily published Website from all around the World News

Browse by Category

  • Business (20,132)
  • Ecology (707)
  • Economy (732)
  • Entertainment (21,621)
  • General (15,741)
  • Health (9,770)
  • Lifestyle (737)
  • News (22,149)
  • People (733)
  • Politics (741)
  • Science (15,949)
  • Sports (21,232)
  • Technology (15,717)
  • World (713)

Recent News

Column: Teach kupuna new technology skills – Honolulu Star-Advertiser

Empowering Kupuna: Unlocking New Technology Skills for a Connected Future

July 6, 2025
Ben Shelton’s sister booed by Wimbledon crowd when job revealed – Yahoo Sports

Wimbledon Crowd Booes Ben Shelton’s Sister Following Shocking Job Reveal

July 6, 2025
  • About
  • Advertise
  • Privacy & Policy
  • Contact

© 2023 earth-news.info

No Result
View All Result

© 2023 earth-news.info

No Result
View All Result

© 2023 earth-news.info

Go to mobile version