Forbes The lone star tick, which is known for its aggressive nature and bites that can cause alpha-gal syndrome, or red meat allergy, as well as other dangerous viruses, is spreading across the United States beyond its usual habitat in the southeast, a study suggests, as climate change exacerbates rising temperatures and longer warm seasons across the country.
The tick species primarily resides in the southeastern U.S., but a study by scientists at the University of Kansas, Kansas State University and Walter Reed suggests that in recent years it has been found in increasingly northern and western locations, as far west as Wyoming and as far north as Maine, and some scientists say that the growth of the lone star tick’s habitat could be due to longer seasons of warm temperature caused by climate change.
Bites from a lone star tick are the primary cause in the U.S. of alpha-gal syndrome, which causes an allergic reaction to a sugar known as alpha-gal found in beef, pork and lamb, among other mammalian meats and dairy products.