Wildlife Disease News Digest

Grant will address deadly fish virus
The Bay City Times (Posted by www.mlive.com)
13 Feb 2008
Area: United States

A multi-state research grant will focus on addressing a deadly fish virus in Lake Huron and other Great Lakes. The Great Lakes Fishery Trust announced a $750,000 grant on Tuesday to address viral hemorrhagic septicemia, or VHS. Researchers from the U.S. Geological Survey's Western Fisheries Research Center, Michigan State University and Cornell University have joined together for the effort. The research is meant to provide resource managers in the Great Lakes region with new tools and information to better understand, predict and manage the threat posed by the fatal fish disease, state officials said.

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FebruaryScience Picks — Leads, Feeds and Story Seeds
USGS Newsroom
04 Feb 2008

Bird Flights and Accompanying Diseases Require No Passport

A hunter in Mississippi recently recovered a pintail duck originally banded in Japan eight years earlier, illustrating the connectivity between the United States and Asia through migratory birds. Highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 has previously occurred in Japan, and scientists now have the opportunity to study whether the North American and Asian pintail populations are exchanging avian influenza viruses and whether it is possible for pintails to transmit these viruses from Japan to North America. . . .

It's in Their Blood — Mercury, That Is

What do a variety of waterbirds have in common in the San Francisco Bay-Delta? They share the legacy of mercury contamination from historical mercury and gold mining in California. They are also the focus of a collaborative project, to which USGS scientists are contributing, investigating the risks that mercury poses to waterbirds breeding within the estuary. . .

Desert Tortoises Exposed to and Affected by High Arsenic Levels

Desert tortoises spend much of their lives in contact with dust, soil and sediments, including potentially toxic elements. A study by USGS scientists on soil, stream sediment and plant samples in the Mojave and Colorado deserts, inhabited by tortoises, revealed abnormal concentrations of arsenic due to nearby mining of arsenic-rich ores. Scientists also found that both shell and respiratory diseases in desert tortoises are linked to arsenic exposure and that the outer layer of a tortoise's shell provides a chronological timeline of elements in their environment. . .

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H5N1 found in market
The Standard - thestandard.com.hk
13 Feb 2008
Area: Hong Kong China

Authorities are stepping up health measures at Cheung Sha Wan Wholesale Food Market after an oriental magpie robin found there tested positive for the H5 avian flu virus. A spokesman for the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department said last night the bird, a common species in Hong Kong, was found on Friday. "In view of the tentative finding, we will conduct a thorough cleansing and disinfection operation in both the Wholesale Food Market and the Temporary Wholesale Poultry Market in Cheung Sha Wan tomorrow," the spokesman said. "We will also step up inspections and surveillance of the wholesale poultry market."

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Poison mystery after pets and wildlife die
Cambridge News - www.cambridge-news.co.uk
14 Feb 2008
Area: England United Kingdom

A Mystery poison is thought to be killing dogs and wildlife near two villages - leading to fears children could also be at risk. Six dogs have died in recent months - two in the last two weeks - and the bodies of foxes have been found between Elmdon and Chrishall. Two other dogs have survived poisoning in the same area. Chrishall Parish Council has put up notices warning dog owners to keep their pets on leads as the Government's science laboratory analyses samples from post-mortems to establish the source of the poison.

. . . Mrs Lewis said a local farmer had discovered the bodies of several foxes and rabbits that had died for no apparent reason. Natural England, which investigates and prosecutes cases of poisoning of wildlife, including cats and dogs, visited the area after the first two deaths but found no evidence of spillage of poison. A spokeswoman said post-mortems carried out on a dog and fox proved inconclusive and tissue samples had been sent to the Central Science Laboratory for further analysis. "We are awaiting the results, which can take several months, before deciding on the next course of action," she said.

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Hunter-Killed Elk Test Negative for CWD; Waterfowl Tests Negative for High-Path Strain of AI [Press Release]
Pennsyvania Game Commission (Posted by www.earthtimes.org)
13 Feb 2008
Area: Pennsyvania United States

Samples taken from the 35 hunter-killed elk during the state's 2007 hunting season have all tested negative for chronic wasting disease (CWD), according to Dr. Walt Cottrell, the Pennsylvania Game Commission's wildlife veterinarian. Cottrell noted that the Game Commission still is awaiting the results of the 3,800 hunter-killed deer samples collected during the 2007 rifle deer season. "Currently, there are no confirmed or suspected cases of CWD-infected deer or elk in Pennsylvania," Cottrell said. "Conducting these tests on hunter-killed deer and elk will help to assure us and the general public that it is unlikely that CWD is present in wild deer and elk in the state.

"With CWD confirmed in New York and West Virginia, we obviously need to keep a watchful eye on our wild and captive deer and elk. Working closely with the state Department of Agriculture and other agency representatives on the state's CWD Task Force, we hope to protect our state's herds from this always-fatal disease." CWD tests on the elk samples were conducted by the New Bolton Center, which is the University of Pennsylvania's veterinary diagnostics laboratory. Under a contract with Penn State University, the elk samples also were tested for brucellosis and bovine tuberculosis and found to be free from these diseases.

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