Report Identifies 'Missing Linkages' in Wildlife Corridors
The Malibu Times
28 Aug 2006
Ward Lauren/Special to The Malibu
Photo courtesy of South Coast Wildlands Map of the South Coast Missing Linkage Project's linkage design for the Santa Monica-Sierra Madre mountains connection.
A report by the National Park Service and a nonprofit agency recommends methods and enhancements needed in local mountain areas to help maintain natural movement of wildlife between large habitat areas.
A "missing linkages" report designed to ensure the continued existence of wildlife indigenous to the Santa Monica/Sierra Madre mountains has been released by the National Park Service, in conjunction with the nonprofit South Coast Wildlands organization, to approximately 90 civic agencies, jurisdictions and public action groups focused on open space and wildlife habitat conservation.
The 213-page report, part of the South Coast Missing Linkages Project and titled "A Linkage Design for the Santa Monica-Sierra Madre Connection," is an informational rather than an action document and is advisory in nature, Parks Service officials said.
More Tests Confirm Low-path Bird Flu in Michigan
Reuters
28 Aug 2006
A second round of tests on swans in Michigan confirmed the birds have a low-pathogenic strain of H5N1 and not the deadly avian influenza virus that has killed more than 141 people in Asia, Europe and Africa, the U.S. Agriculture Department said on Monday.
Routine tests conducted in a Michigan gaming area earlier this month found two of about 20 swans had what was believed to be a low-pathogenic strain of H5N1. "Genetic testing confirms that these swans were not carrying the highly pathogenic strain of H5N1 avian influenza that is circulating overseas," USDA said in a statement.
The swans had shown no sign of sickness, which indicated this was low pathogenicity avian influenza. Pathogenicity refers to the ability of the virus to produce a disease. A low-pathogenic strain, which produces less disease and mortality in birds than does a high-pathogenic version, poses no threat to human health.
Archive Number 20060825.2398 - Anthrax, Wildlife - Botswana (North-West, Chobe Natl. Park)
ProMED
25 Aug 2006
Joe Dudley
Since an anthrax outbreak was reported in the Chobe area last week, 9 wild animals have died. Department of Wildlife and National Parks officials told a heads of department meeting in Kasane that samples taken from the carcasses of 2 elephants for analysis proved positive.
Principal Wildlife Officer Lucas Rutina said elephants, zebras and buffaloes were found dead last week. Rutina said the mortality rate was likely to rise as the disease was expected to spread before the rainy season.
District Wildlife Coordinator Goitseone Lebonetse said his office was taking steps such as proper disposal of carcasses found at Ihaha in the Chobe National Park and Muchenje in the west of the Chobe enclave, to control its spread. Lebonetse said the department had asked for a helicopter to help them carry out further investigations in affected areas and were embarking on public education campaigns.
Biologists Monitor Oregon's Sage Grouse Population for West Nile
The Associated Press (Posted by OregonLive.com)
26 Aug 2006
Wildlife officials have pinpointed the first known cases of West Nile Virus in Oregon's sage grouse, a population that has been under consideration for the threatened and endangered species list. The investigation began in early August, when a landowner near Burns Junction reported dead birds in a field, said Christian Hagen, sage grouse coordinator with the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife.
U.S. Geological Survey biologists with the National Wildlife Health Center got to the property a few days later, and set up a systematic survey to look for dead birds, he said. They found three fresh carcasses that tested positive for the disease as well as more than 60 decomposed birds.
Sage grouse are chicken-like birds that can grow to be 30 inches long and have pointed tails, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. They live in areas dominated by sagebrush, and in Oregon are mostly found in the southeast part of the state.
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