Menhaden
The Monday, April 13 webinar Menhaden Policy Review: 2026 General Assembly will recap how the Virginia General Assembly addressed menhaden issues during the 2026 session. Learn more and register.
Resilience
The Monday, April 27 webinar A Resilient Commonwealth: Exploring Virginia’s Statewide Priorities will feature speakers Adrienne Kotula, Deputy Secretary of Natural and Historic Resources, and Jay Ford, Virginia Policy Manager at Chesapeake Bay Foundation. The “speakers will share insights from both state leadership and on-the-ground policy work, highlighting strategies that support resilient infrastructure, protect vital ecosystems, and advance coordinated resilience efforts statewide.” Learn more and register.
Ticks
Old Dominion University (ODU) has a tick team (!), the ODU Tick Team Research Lab.
The ODU Tick Research Team is a collaboration between four different labs at Old Dominion University. We study host-vector-pathogen systems from a broad range of perspectives. Faculty members have research backgrounds in microbial genetics, population genetics, mathematical ecology, epidemiology, invasion biology, and community ecology.
Practically, the team offers the Northern Neck tick testing and tick research. There is a requested $50 donation to get a tick tested for Borrelia burgdorferi, B. miyamotoi, Anaplasma phagocytophilum, Ehrlichia chaffeensis, E. ewingii, and Rickettsia spp. ODU will test ticks pulled off people, pets, and game animals. For testing,
Include who or what the tick was pulled off of (human, dog, deer, etc.), the date the tick was found, and the general geographic location of the tick. Put the tick in a small ziploc bag and freeze it for at least two hours to ensure it is dead. Make sure the bag is completely sealed, and place into a standard or padded envelope. . . Learn more at https://sites.wp.odu.edu/tick-team/what-we-do/tick-testing/sending-us-your-ticks/.
To donate ticks to ODU for research purposes,
Include who or what the tick was pulled off of (human, dog, deer, etc.), the date the tick was found, and the general geographic location of the tick. Put the tick in a small ziploc bag and freeze it for at least two hours to ensure it is dead. Make sure the bag is completely sealed, and place into a standard or padded envelope. . . Learn more at https://sites.wp.odu.edu/tick-team/what-we-do/tick-testing/sending-us-your-ticks/. Questions about the donation process can be sent to hgaff@odu.edu.