TOP STORIES

UCSF researchers identify virus behind mysterious parrot disease
EurekAlert - www.eurekalert.org
29 Jul 2008

Researchers at the University of California, San Francisco, have identified a virus behind the mysterious infectious disease that has been killing parrots and exotic birds for more than 30 years.

The team, led by UCSF professors Joseph DeRisi, PhD, and Don Ganem, MD, also has developed a diagnostic test for the virus linked to Proventricular Dilation Disease, or PDD, which will enable veterinarians worldwide to control the spread of the virus.

>>> FULL ARTICLE

Mysterious disease killing Newfoundland moose
Telegraph-Journal - telegraphjournal.canadaeast.com
30 Jul 2008
J Ducharme
Location: Newfoundland, Canada - Map It

A mysterious disease that has killed a number of moose on Newfoundland's northern peninsula has left provincial wildlife experts in that province scratching their heads. It's unclear how many moose have been lost due to the illness that causes the animals to literally waste away, become walking skeletons and then die.

>>> FULL ARTICLE

Appeal for public help to track deadly frog disease
Telegraph.co.uk - www.telegraph.co.uk
28 Jul 2008
P Eccleston

Conservation groups have asked the public for help in tracking two deadly amphibian diseases.

. . ."Reports of outbreaks across the UK are absolutely vital for ZSL's continuing research and, in the long term, to ensure the survival of our extraordinary amphibians."

Daniel Piec, Froglife's Head of Conservation, said: "There is a whole range of reasons why dead amphibians turn up in gardens and many of these are completely normal events. However, during the humid summer months we hear numerous reports of unusual frog deaths in gardens.

>>> FULL ARTICLE

Plague, wildlife, human exposure - Russia (Siberia)
ProMed - www.promail.org
30 Jul 2008
Location: Russia (Siberia) - Map It

A 13-year-old Siberian boy has been hospitalized after catching a plague-infected ground squirrel and bringing it home, Russia's top sanitary official said on Thursday.

>>> FULL ARTICLE

OTHER WILDLIFE HEALTH RELATED NEWS
Photo courtesy of Discovery

• Sage Grouse and Ravens [grouse decline - raven predation responsible] [video]
  
  
• Lenoir sees first confirmed rabies case of 2008 - Map It
  
  
• Wild boars pose danger to local domestic swine, plants, people
  
  
• Emerging Equine Disease: Four Diseases/Syndromes to Watch
  
  
• Shark Avoids Suffocation by Turning Off Electricity [interesting tidbit]
  
  
• Symbiotic Microbes Induce Profound Genetic Changes In Their Hosts
  
  
• European Birds Flock To Warming Britain, While Some Northern Species Not Faring As Well
  
  
• Interstate disease deal stalls
  
  
• Foes warn of battle over lab

WILDLIFE HEALTH RELATED PUBLICATIONS

Wildlife Disease Information Node (WDIN) Highlights News Bulletin - July 2007
Vol 03, Iss 07
In this issue:

• Main Article: Emerging Zoonotic Diseases
  
• Sidenotes: Domestic Animal Health Resources
  
• In the Spotlight: Disease Emergence and Resurgence: The Wildlife-Human Connection
  
• Top Resources from the WDIN Website—June 2008
  

Emerging Infectious Diseases - Aug 2008
Vol 14, No 8


Gene Segment Reassortment between American and Asian Lineages of Avian Influenza Virus from Waterfowl in the Beringia Area
Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis. 2008 Jul 18. [Epub ahead of print][online abstract only]
J Wahlgren et al.