# Short communication: Timber harvesting impacts small mammal foraging behavior and larval tick infestation

## TL;DR

Timber harvesting affects how small mammals forage and increases tick infestations, which could influence tick-borne disease spread.

## Contribution

This study identifies a behavioral mechanism linking forest management practices to tick infestation in small mammals.

## Key findings

- Higher timber harvest intensity correlates with reduced rodent foraging intensity.
- Increased harvest intensity is associated with higher tick burdens on small mammals.
- Host behavior may explain how forest structure influences tick densities in managed forests.

## Abstract

Small mammals are important blood-meal hosts for the blacklegged tick, Ixodes scapularis, and reservoirs for the pathogens it transmits. Timber harvesting, a widespread forest management practice within I. scapularis’s endemic range, may impact tick densities and infection prevalence via effects on rodent communities. We compared rodent population size, activity patterns, tick burdens, and tick-borne pathogen infection rates in forests under different timber harvesting regimes. We found that harvest intensity correlates negatively with rodent foraging intensity and positively with tick burdens. Thus, host behavior may mechanistically link forest structure to tick densities in managed forests.