Warmer winters are allowing lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum) populations to expand northward in the U.S., but a new analysis of historical trends argues land management and deer numbers are the primary factors. Contributing to this analysis is a fresh translation of a 1754 Swedish-language report by Finnish naturalist Pehr Kalm. The translation, conducted by Swedish entomologist Anders Lindström, Ph.D., provides clearer evidence of the lone star tick’s range at the time. Kalm’s description of the lone star tick (female shown here) notes that it can cause highly itchy swellings “that even if one is assured that it will be worse if they are touched, it is almost impossible to keep the fingers away because you want to scratch and claw them.” (Photo by Ilia Rochlin, Ph.D.)