Wildlife Disease News Digest

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Research on parrots by Genesee County dermatologist could provide clues to human neuromotor disorders
Flint Journal - www.mlive.com/flintjournal
08 Dec 2008
E Shaw
Photo credit Jim Creek
Area: Michigan, United States

A curious dermatologist and a dead parrot have helped unlock the secrets of a virus that has eluded animal researchers for decades. Flint Township dermatologist Dr. Scott Karlene is credited with helping to isolate and identify a new avian bornavirus, which causes a fatal neuromotor disorder in parrots and other exotic birds similar to Parkinson's Disease. The discovery might eventually provide clues to the cause of human neuromotor diseases. It could even turn out to be an early warning for a potential new threat to public health.

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It's official: Men really are the weaker sex
The Independent - www.independent.co.uk
07 Dec 2008
G Leon

The male gender is in danger, with incalculable consequences for both humans and wildlife, startling scientific research from around the world reveals. The research – to be detailed tomorrow in the most comprehensive report yet published – shows that a host of common chemicals is feminising males of every class of vertebrate animals, from fish to mammals, including people. Backed by some of the world's leading scientists, who say that it "waves a red flag" for humanity and shows that evolution itself is being disrupted, the report comes out at a particularly sensitive time for ministers.

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Transmitters to unravel avian migration mystery
Express Buzz - www.expressbuzz.com
08 Dec 2008
S Mohanty
Area: Chilika lagoon, Orissa, India

For the first time, migratory routes of birds that throng the Chilika lagoon would be determined through satellite telemetry. An initiative that will throw light on the path that the avian visitors take to during their intercontinental migration, which has remained more or less shrouded in mystery, would see 35 birds of five species fitted with satellite transmitters. A team from the United State Geological Survey (USGS) would impart technical training to the local wildlife as well as veterinary staffers as well as to members of Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) which will play a major role in this satellite telemetry project along with the Food and Agriculture Organisation.

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Center hopes to breed endangered salamanders
Columbia Missourian - www.columbiamissourian.com
05 Dec 2008
Photo credit: St. Louis Zoo
Area: Missouri, United States

. . . Jeff Ettling, director of the center at the Saint Louis Zoo, said the amphibian chytrid fungus is a cause of the salamander’s disappearance. The amphibian chytrid fungus is a contagious disease that occurs in amphibians. “It’s the equivalence of AIDS in humans,” Ettling said. “It’s not the fungus that kills them; it’s the secondary infections that develop because the fungus is present.” Ettling said amphibians breathe through their skin, and when the disease thickens skin cell layers, it is more difficult for the species to breathe.

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OTHER WILDLIFE HEALTH RELATED NEWS
Photo credit: Guardian - The week in wildlife