Table 5 PLSR Model results for multivariate larval I. pacificus average and peak density in 2013–2014 and 2014–2015. VIP scores greater than 1 (highlighted in bold) indicate significant contributions of those variables to the variation explained by each component; variable weights indicate the direction of the effect. Asterisk indicates the variable contributing most significantly to the variation in the component, and the strongest predictor of tick density. The second component acts on residual variation not explained by the first component

Avg. max. winter temp. 2013–2014

-0.178 (0.561)

0.112 (0.533)

-0.017 (0.057)

0.395 (0.895)

Elevation (m)

0.281 (0.890)

-0.258 (0.878)

0.304 (1.054)

-0.123 (0.849)

Slope

0.124 (0.391)

-0.647 (0.901)

0.214 (0.741)

-0.254 (0.804)

Canopy cover (%)

0.351 (1.111)

-0.281 (1.078)

0.311 (1.078)

-0.293 (1.052)

Litter cover (%)

0.446 (1.411)

-0.048 (1.292)

0.674 (2.335)*

0.443 (2.032)*

Shrub cover (%)

0.155 (0.491)

0.287 (0.580)

0.056 (0.194)

0.049 (0.184)

Grass cover (%)

-0.356 (1.126)

-0.315 (1.106)

-0.343 (1.189)

-0.238 (1.049)

Bare ground cover (%)

0.046 (0.145)

0.381 (0.504)

-0.088 (0.306)

-0.054 (0.261)

Stem density (No./Plot)

0.438 (1.385)

-0.046 (1.268)

0.372 (1.289)

-0.215 (1.090)

Woodrat density

0.455 (1.438)*

0.305 (1.371)*

0.176 (0.609)

-0.365 (0.946)

Avg. max. winter temp. 2014–2015

na

na

-0.101 (0.351)

0.377 (0.895)

Avg. max. summer temp. 2014

na

na

-0.043 (0.150)

0.312 (0.716)

R-squared

0.398

0.078

0.359

0.267