Wildlife Disease News Digest

Wolf Slain in Pack's Raid on Village Found to Have Rabies
Anchorage Daily News - www.adn.com
01 Nov 2007
D Hunter
Photo courtesy of Ron Engstrom - Anchorage Daily News
Area: Alaska United States

Marshall: Dogs not vaccinated for disease should be euthanized.

A wolf killed during an attack on sled dogs in the Yukon River village of Marshall last week has tested positive for rabies, and state officials Wednesday night said unvaccinated dogs in the village should be euthanized. The wolf was part of a pack that killed a half-dozen dogs the night of Oct. 24 before villagers chased them out, killing the one wolf and wounding others. Tests returned late Wednesday showed that animal had rabies, and the state's wildlife veterinarian said it's possible other wolves in the pack also have the disease. Dogs could have been infected as well. "Rabies virus is present in saliva, and when several animals eat from the same source, the virus can be quickly spread to other members of the pack," said Dr. Kimberlee Beckmen, the wildlife vet with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game.

>>>FULL ARTICLE

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Report Details Environmental Damage at Rocky Mountain Arsenal
All American Patroits - www.allamericanpatriots.com
31 Oct 2007
Area: Colorado United States

Colorado Attorney General seeking compensation from Shell, U.S. Army

Colorado Attorney General John W. Suthers today released a Natural Resource Damage Assessment Plan (NRDA) detailing past and ongoing environmental damages caused by chemical production at the Rocky Mountain Arsenal. The NRDA found significant harms to environmental resources on and off the Arsenal site, most notably contaminated groundwater and injured wildlife. The assessment provides the basis of a legal claim to recover damages for environmental harms should the parties be unable to settle the claim. Although cleanup actions at the Arsenal are scheduled to be completed in 2010, the report notes contamination will remain on the site and in the surrounding areas for decades, at least.

The NRDA was prepared on behalf of the three State natural resource trustees, the Attorney General, and designated representatives from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) and the Department of Natural Resources (DNR). “Over the last quarter century, we have worked with Shell and the Army to cleanup the Arsenal and make it a wildlife refuge for the benefit of Coloradans,” said Attorney General Suthers. “However, the law entitles the citizens of this state to fair compensation for past and ongoing harm to our environment. It is our job to ensure Coloradans are reimbursed for the natural resource damages caused by Shell Oil and the federal government.”

>>>FULL ARTICLE

Experts: Flushing Prescription Drugs Hurting Fish Populations
Business North - www.businessnorth.com
30 Oct 2007
Area: United States

Researchers are examining the threats posed to Lake Superior by new chemicals from prescription drugs that people flush down the drain. Danielle Kaeding reports. They act similarly to the banned pesticide DDT, and they’re commonly found in pharmaceuticals or detergents. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers or PBDEs and chlorinated chemical compounds are making their way into Lake Superior. The chemicals can feminize male fish, altering their ability to reproduce.

Matt Hudson of the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife Commission says the chemicals are a growing problem in the Great Lakers. “We’re seeing increasing concentrations in the environment and also the fact that they’re being found in the polar regions of the earth is showing that they’re being transported via the atmosphere like traditional legacy pollutants.” Hudson says a list of chemicals has been developed to help single out which ones are affecting the lake most. “From an initial list of 22,000 chemicals, it’s been whittled down to about 400 now of probable substances that we should really be taking a closer look at.

>>>FULL ARTICLE

They May Drive You Batty but Creatures Pose Little Threat
Standard-Times (Posted by www.southcoasttoday.com)
31 Oct 2007
T Pacheco
Area: Massachusetts United States

. . . "The whole social attitude toward bats is tainted by rabies," said Tom French, assistant director of the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife. "Some bats get rabies, but the fatality rate is about one person every second year in the United States. About half of those are from bats." In spite of those small numbers, the state's Department of Public Health recommends seeking medical advice if a bat is found in a room where people have been sleeping. That's because bats have small teeth, so a bite may not leave visible marks — unlike the vampires of the B-movies.

If possible, the bat should be safely captured — preferably by a trained professional — and tested for rabies. Bat people in the know say the two most common varieties in SouthCoast are the little brown bat (myotis lucifugus) and the big brown bat (eptesicus fuscus). Little brown bats have a wing span of 8 to 10 inches and a body approximately 5 inches long. They are migratory and often summer locally in coastal communities.

>>>FULL ARTICLE

Chronic Wasting Disease
Chronic Wasting Disease Alliance (Posted by www.wyomingnews.com)
01 Nov 2007
S Stephenson
Area: Wyoming United States

Rich Guenzel follows the tracks of the already flattened grass down the side of Wyoming Highway 130. Hopping out of the Game and Fish truck, he pulls signs out of the back, advising hunters to stop at the fast approaching check station, a group of small cabins called “Jack’s Place” right outside of Centennial. The station isn’t set up as a law enforcement station, but rather a sampling station or sorts n one of many that are being set up all throughout the state to test for Chronic Wasting Disease, or CWD, in deer, elk and moose. “We don’t know until people stop whether they have anything or not,” Guenzel says. “We’re basically going for a sample.”

Guenzel says in the 21 years he has been with the department as a wildlife biologist, he has seen the public concern about CWD steadily decline. “Sampling really wasn’t a big deal until they had that mad cow episode in Great Britain,” he says. “That raised the question about human health issues.” Guenzel finishes placing signs and pulls into the check station. The trucks are already starting to roll in. Tim Hawkins, CWD testing technician, finishes pulling a sample from an elk.

>>>FULL ARTICLE

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