Textbook analysis is seen as a major element for studying environmental education addressing pupils, image analysis being rather relevant when studying textbooks written in 11 languages. We analysed 25 textbooks from 14 countries addressed to 14-16-year-old pupils, focusing on: (1) local and foreign/global images; (2) urban/rural and nature images; (3) negative impact, human management, and the beauty of nature; and (4) men and women in images with negative and positive impact. We distinguished some trends between Western (WEc) and Eastern (EEc) European countries and non-European countries (NEc). In contrast to textbooks from EEc and NEc, which tend to show the beauty of nature with little human influence, WEc textbooks tend to exhibit more images of urban/rural landscape, of human negative impact and of human management, expressing an anthropocentric view of the environment. Men are usually more present in textbook images than women. However, some images exhibiting more women than men could be found in textbooks from WEc and EEc, but never in NEc. In negative impact pictures, men are more often present than women but NEc women are never present in such images. Women are more frequent than men in positive impact images. Results suggest that textbooks from EEc and NEc should give more emphasis to human management and urban/rural images, whereas those from WEc should give more attention to the beauty of nature. A balance in the presence of men and women in images should be a matter of greater concern by all textbooks' authors and publishers.

A total of 1679 questing Ixodes ricinus ticks collected in Lithuania and 535 I. ricinus ticks collected in Norway from locations with different habitats were investigated for the presence of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato. In Lithuania, 223 ticks (13.3%) were infected with B. burgdorferi s.l., and in Norway, 28 ticks (5.2%). The highest prevalence of B. burgdorferi s.l was found in deciduous and mixed forests (19.4% in Lithuania, 8.6% in Norway). A lower prevalence was determined in pine forests (8.6% in Lithuania) and costal zones (4.3% in Norway), and the least prevalence was found in grasslands (2.5% in Lithuania, 1% in Norway). A total of 398 rodents belonging to 9 species were live-captured in Lithuania and Norway. Prevalence of B. burgdorferi s.l. in rodents varied between species and sampling sites in both countries. In Lithuania, the prevalence of infection was higher in Microtus arvalis (range 25-57% in different sampling sites) and in Myodes glareolus (range 14-71%) than in Apodemus flavicollis (range 0-37%) and in A. agrarius (range 11-33%). In Norway, the prevalence of B. burgdorferi s.l. in rodents was lower (range from 5% in A. sylvaticus to 6% in A. flavicollis). B. afzelii was the predominant genospecies in ticks and rodents in Lithuania and Norway. In Lithuania, B. afzelii was found in 76%, B. garinii in 10%, B. burgdorferi sensu stricto in 7%, and Borrelia spp. in 6% of infected ticks. Double infections were observed in 1% of the infected ticks. In Norway, B. afzelii was found in 68%, B. garinii in 21%, and B. burgdorferi s.s. in 11% of infected ticks. All infected rodents from both countries hosted B. afzelii genospecies. Only the red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris) harbored both B. afzelii and B. burgdorferi s.s.

Outbreaks of African Swine Fever (ASF) in domestic pig farms in Lithuania typically begin in June and are detected through October, suggesting that insects might be involved in the transmission of the virus. Entomological collecting was performed to obtain two data sets: from farms with ASF outbreaks, and from farms without ASF outbreaks but in an ASF‐infected area. Target insects from the families Muscidae, Calliphoridae and Tabanidae were analysed for the presence of ASF Virus (ASFV) DNA. Musca domestica L., Calliphoridae flies and Stomoxys calcitrans (L.) collected by entomological net during ASF outbreaks were confirmed to be ASFV positive. Viral DNA detected in insects collected by Nzi traps from farms with no ASFV outbreaks indicate that Culex, Lucilia, M. domestica and S. calcitrans are likely to play a role in spreading the ASFV mechanically. This finding could suggest contamination from outside of the farms: from infected wild boar or their carcasses. The role of Stomoxys flies as mechanical vectors could be accidental, because we did not find a significant correlation between the activity of S. calcitrans and the number of ASF outbreaks in pig farms, whereas temperatures positively correlated to the number of ASF outbreaks during 2018–2019.

RAPD markers were used to measure the genetic diversity of 119 individuals of Ixodes ricinus collected from Lithuania and Norway. The samples were analysed within and also between the populations. We analysed 74 loci in each of 6 populations. Our results show high levels of diversity within the populations. The percentage of polymorphic loci of the six analysed populations: Birzai, Vilnius, Kretinga, Tjore, Kjosvik and Odderoya were 68.9%, 58.1%, 78.38%, 62.2%, 44.6% and 68.9%, respectively. The percentage of polymorphic loci in the Lithuanian populations was 93.2%, and in the Norwegian populations 81.08%. The genetic distance ranged from 0.019 to 0.079 within Norwegian populations and from 0.005 to 0.0967 within Lithuanian populations and between the countries from 0.022 to 0.146. The genetic variation of I. ricinus among Norwegian populations was lower than among Lithuanian populations. The highest part of genetic variation in I. ricinus ticks depends on variation within Kretinga (Lithuania) and Odderoya (Norway) populations situated in coastal areas where many migratory and sea birds are aggregated.

Abstract.A total of 693 small rodents were live-trapped in Lithuania and Norway. In Lithuania, the mice Apodemus flavicollis and A. agrarius were more frequently infested with ticks than the voles Microtus arvalis and Myodes glareolus. The overall prevalence of infestation with Ixodes ricinus in different sampling locations of Lithuania ranged for A. flavicollis from 0% to 92.3%, for M. glareolus from 5.9% to 100%, and for M. arvalis from 0% to 37.8%. In Norwegian sites the prevalence of infestation was higher for A. flavicollis (62.7-98% in different sites) than for A. sylvaticus (42.9-77.8%). The most intensive infestation of rodents with I. ricinus larvae was observed in May and June. Contrasting patterns of infestation with larvae and nymphs were observed in males and females of M. glareolus and A. flavicollis.