An infestation of winter ticks in the Takhini and Braeburn elk herds could threaten moose populations, though wildlife officials say the risk is probably low.

'But definitely, we have to take a closer look at it,' wildlife veterinarian Michelle Oakley of the Department of Environment told reporters during a news conference Tuesday afternoon.

Oakley, formerly the regional biologist for the Haines Junction area, said there's been no evidence to suggest the local moose populations have been affected.

The winter ticks, she explained, are not usually fatal for elk, deer and bison, though they can be for moose, which can die from substantial hair loss leading to heat loss.

The winter ticks, the veterinarian emphasized, are not harmful to people, and do not carry the lime disease that's carried by other ticks down south that can cause a feverish sickness in humans.

No reports have come from hunters in the area of moose infected with ticks or suffering noticeable hair loss, nor has there been any evidence of moose killed along the highway network in the area, she said.

Oakley said there is a need, nonetheless, for department officials to meet with the local first nations and renewable resource councils to discuss the situation, which only came to light last month during a new radio collaring program for the elk.

All of the 18 animals collared 12 on the Takhini herd and six on the Braeburn segment were carrying the ticks, up to 1,000 per animal, Oakley said.

She said while there are generally not a threat to elk, deer and bison, they have killed moose in other jurisdictions.

Oakley pointed out, however, there are several factors working in favour of the moose population:

To begin with, there are not a lot of moose in the range used by the Takhini and Braeburn elk because of the different habitat requirements.

The ticks drop from their host animals in the spring, and lay their eggs exactly where they fall. The larvae grow over the summer and in the fall they climb up surrounding shrub and plant life to shoulder height, where they wait for an animal to brush by so they can cling on.

But in the spring, elk typically frequent south-facing slopes where there is lots of exposure to the sun. It is not the habitat where one would expect to find a moose in the fall, Oakley and others pointed out Tuesday.

The larvae can only be transferred through direct contact with the host.

Oakley said winter ticks are not known to be fatal for elk, deer and bison.

Bison and deer, she said, are particularly good at what she described as self-grooming the ticks away, while elk are also good but not as good.

Moose, on the other hand, are not good groomers.

While there may be 1,000 ticks found on an elk, for instance, an infected moose can have up to 50,000 of the bugs, some of which can be as big as a pinkly nail when they're full of blood, Oakley said.

The moose do suffer from blood loss with that many ticks on board, but are more susceptible to the effects of hair loss.

As the moose rubs up against a tree to rid itself of the aggravating pests, there is more and more hair loss and exposure of raw flesh, causing more and more heat loss. And as the animal is preoccupied with scratching away the ticks, it forgets to eat properly, worsening its plight even further.

Oakley said she isn't sure how the infestation of ticks on the elk began.

There was a case in 1994 of a moose in the Watson Lake area that was carrying the winter ticks, though that was much closer to the southern jurisdictions where the winter tick is not uncommon, she said.

Oakley said back in the mid-1990s, when the last of the captive elk were released in the Yukon's captive rearing program, some of the animals had winter ticks, though it was believed back then the ticks would not survive.

Whether the current infestation dates back to the release of those animals in the mid-1990s is difficult to say, she said.

Similarly, Oakley is not ruling out the arrival of a new invasive species coming north on the wings of climate change and warmer temperatures.

It was pointed out that there have now been three confirmed reports of white tail deer in the Yukon, a species that is obviously beginning to move its range northward, just as its cousin the mule deer has established itself in southern Yukon in recent years.

Oakley said when she noticed scruffy-looking elk last spring, it raised her curiosity about the possibility of winter ticks.

She learned the tick has been documented on a road-killed elk in 2004.

She did some sampling on two of the eight mule deer shot last fall in the Yukon's first-ever permitted deer hunt.

Oakley said larvae were present on the deer, though she has not yet confirmed what kind they are.

When the collaring work was going on last month, officials were looking for it, she said.

Oakley said there has been no evidence from the bison harvest this past winter of the winter tick.