Throwing Shade at the Wrong Animal

For years I've been throwing shade at the white tailed deer because I thought they were responsible for the Lyme disease. I thought the deer were infecting the deer ticks.  The ticks are called deer ticks. Well, the ticks are also called black legged ticks and maybe that is a better name for them. Now I learn from this article called Forbidding Forecast that it is not the deer infecting the ticks.  White footed mice infect 95% of the ticks that bite them. Since my house is built on the edge of a fragmented forest, I have mice in my yard. Mice in the yard and mice in the house (in the fall).  Dang white footed mice!  If the population of white footed mice goes up one year, the rate of Lyme's disease goes up the next year.  Black legged ticks on white footed mice!  Crazy!