TOP STORIES

Prioritizing amphibian species for captive breeding to save them from extinction
Mongabay - news.mongabay.com
19 Nov 2008
Photo credit: Marcos Guerra

Frogs, toads, salamanders and other amphibians are disappearing at an alarming rate. Of approximately 6,000 amphibian species in the world, about one third are classified as threatened or endangered. A disease caused by a chytrid fungus has devastated frogs living in mid to high elevation streams worldwide. Amphibians also face habitat destruction as forests and wetlands are developed and polluted by agricultural chemicals. In Panama, highland frog populations west of the Canal have declined at an alarming rate.

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Common cold virus came from birds
EurekAlert - www.eurekalert.org (Source: Society for General Microbiology)
20 Nov 2008

A virus that causes cold-like symptoms in humans originated in birds and may have crossed the species barrier around 200 years ago, according to an article published in the December issue of the Journal of General Virology. Scientists hope their findings will help us understand how potentially deadly viruses emerge in humans. "Human metapneumovirus may be the second most common cause of lower respiratory infection in young children. Studies have shown that by the age of five, virtually all children have been exposed to the virus and re-infections appear to be common," said Professor Dr Fouchier. "We have identified sites on some virus proteins that we can monitor to help identify future dominant strains of the virus."

>>>FULL ARTICLE

Cited Journal Article
>>>Evolutionary dynamics of human and avian metapneumoviruses. J Gen Virol. 2008 Dec; 89(Pt 12): 2933-42.

Reported Wildlife Mortality Events to the USGS National Wildlife Health Center Updated
USGS National Wildlife Health Center
20 Nov 2008
Area: United States

USGS and a network of partners across the country work on documenting wildlife mortality events in order to provide timely and accurate information on locations, species and causes of death. This information was updated on Nov 18, 2008 on the USGS National Wildlife Health Center web page, New and Ongoing Wildlife Mortality Events Nationwide. Quarterly Mortality Reports are also available from this page. These reports go back to 1995.

>>> Updated Wildlife Mortality Event Table

Undiagnosed die-off, apis - China: (GD), RFI - Archive Number 20081119.3654
ProMED-mail - www.promedmail.org
18 Nov 2008
Area: Shaoguan, Guangdong Province, China - Map It

Shaoguan area [in Guangdong province] continues to be perplexed by the mysterious deaths of bees. Over 200 beekeepers have been affected. The 81 beekeepers in Shixing County Beekeepers Association, alone, lost bees of about 2000 boxes last year [2007]. Han Richou, director of the Guangdong Entomological Institute, says field surveys show that the dead [bees] are all Italian bees -- a type of bee imported to China from the West. The majority of worker bees die near the beehive box.

>>>FULL ARTICLE

Puget Sound Researchers Find Antibiotic-Resistant Bacteria in Orcas
Kitsap Sun - www.kitsapsun.com
19 Nov 2008
C Dunagan
Photo credit: Nancy Black/Monterey Bay Whale Watch

Puget Sound's orcas collectively harbor more than a dozen different kinds of antibiotic-resistant bacteria — as well as other bacteria known to kill animals that are in a weakened condition, according to Puget Sound researchers. Independent researchers David Bain, a biologist, and Pete Schroeder, a veterinarian, have been studying the droplets emitted from Puget Sound whales' blow holes and culturing the samples. Their research, discussed this week at a meeting about recent orca deaths, found at least two groups of bacteria known to cause death in immune-compromised individuals. The findings add to other studies that show the orcas, possibly weakened by toxic chemicals in their environment and a salmon shortage, could be wiped out in a catastrophic event — such as an oil spill or disease. Some say a loss of a third or more of the 83 orcas alive today could trigger a death spiral for the entire population.

>>>FULL ARTICLE

OTHER WILDLIFE HEALTH RELATED NEWS
Photo credit: National Geographic News - photography.nationalgeographic.com

• Great blue heron found shot in Aptos dies after surgery - Aptos, Santa Cruz County, California, USA - Map It
• Most state native game fish face extinction [California]
  
• World Is 40 Percent Prepared for Pandemic, U.N. Official Says
• Sparrow numbers 'plummet by 68%' [United Kingdom]
  
• Rat populations on the rise with snakes' decline [Bali, Indonesia]
  
• Park service might kill deer on Md. battlefields to control disease [CWD, Maryland]
  
• University of Wisconsin researchers hunting for disease-spreading ticks [Lyme, Wisconsin]
  
• Turtles Alter Nesting Dates Due To Temperature Change [Mississippi River, USA]
  
• Assignment Earth: Tasmanian Devils
• For Alaska’s sea lions, east beats west