TOP STORIES
Fifth Case of Plague Confirmed in Wyoming Mountain Lions
University of Wyoming – www.uwyo.edu
21 May 2008
Location: Johnson County, Wyoming, USA - Map It
Mountain lion hunters, domestic cat owners and others who may come in contact with mountain lions in Wyoming and other western states are urged to protect themselves and their animals against plague.
"Plague was confirmed in a mountain lion found dead in mid-April by a landowner in rural Johnson County," said Todd Cornish, an associate professor in the University of Wyoming College of Agriculture's Department of Veterinary Sciences.
Cornish said this is the fifth case of plague confirmed in mountain lions in Wyoming in the past three years. The other four cases were in Teton County and the Greater Yellowstone Area of northwestern Wyoming.
Conata Basin ferrets may have plague
Rapid City Journal – www.rapidcityjournal.com
21 May 2008
S Milller
Location: Conata Basin, Pennington, South Dakota, USA - Map It
Plague likely has already infected some of the endangered black-footed ferrets in Conata Basin, a U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service official said Tuesday.
Sylvatic plague was confirmed last week in prairie dogs in Conata Basin, the site of a major black-footed ferret reintroduction area, just south of Badlands National Park.
Wildlife experts haven't been able to survey the area yet for evidence of plague in ferrets, Fish and Wildlife biologist Scott Larson of Pierre said. But he added: "We kind of suspect, if past history at other sites shows, once you are able to see those dead prairie dogs on the surface, the ferrets probably have already been infected in that area. I almost hate to say that," Larson said.
13 birds with West Nile found in Orange County in MayLos Angeles Times - www.latimes.com
21 May 2008
D Reyes
Photo courtesy of Los Angeles Times
Location: Orange County, California, USA - Map It
. . . What has alarmed officials is a report of 13 birds found dead with the virus in Orange County in the first nine days of May. There were no reports of humans with the virus.
"Thirteen birds in such a short time frame is reminiscent of 2004 conditions," said Robert Cummings, Orange County Vector Control science director.
During that critical year, four people died in the county and 28 died statewide after becoming infected with the virus.
UGA Researchers Fight Deadly Game Bird Parasite
Lakefront Hartwell - www.lakefronthartwell.com
20 May 2008
S Schupska
They look like pinecones with feet. But the baby quail, pheasants and chukar partridges that wobble around the University of Georgia poultry science farm in Athens will help save game birds everywhere.
Coccidia parasites can decimate a generation of farm-raised birds. In Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Illinois and Iowa, where large numbers of pheasants and chukars are raised, farmers report a 50 percent loss in severe outbreaks, said Larry McDougald, a poultry parasitologist with the UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences.
Birds that survive an outbreak typically don't grow as large as uninfected birds.
McDougald has spent 30 years studying coccidiosis, the disease caused by coccidia, in chickens and turkeys. “The problem with parasites was brought under control in chickens,” he said.
OTHER WILDLIFE HEALTH RELATED NEWS
Fort Chiswell park gets captive deer transfer - Tumours threaten Tasmanian devil population [includes video]
- Algae bloom sparks health concerns Cambridgeshire lake - Map It
- China fights animal disease spread in quake areas
- Anger after death of fish at popular lake - Map It
WILDLIFE HEALTH RELATED PUBLICATIONS
Experimental Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in the Ferret.
J Comp Pathol. 2008 May;138(4):189-196. Epub 2008 Apr 2 [online abstract only]
C J Sigurdson et al.
Wildlife Disease Association Newsletter [includes write ups on disease investigations by the National Wildlife Health Center
April 2008 [free full-text only]
Distribution of Mycoplasma agassizi in a Gopher Tortoise population in south Florida
Southeastern Naturalist. 2008; 7(1): 145-158 [online abstract only]
ML Karlin
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