Wildlife Disease News Digest

TOP STORIES

Zoos in 'salvage' operation to save Australian species
AFP - http://www.afp.com/afpcom/en/
22 Jan 2009
Area: Sydney, Australia

The two baby Tasmanian devils playing in a glass enclosure at Sydney's Taronga Zoo are not just crowd-pleasers -- these furry black creatures could be the saviours their species desperately needs. In a climate-controlled shipping container nearby, some 500 button-sized southern corroboree frogs present the best chance of keeping the striking black-and-yellow striped Australian amphibian from annihilation. For Taronga curator Paul Andrew, the exhibits show the changing role of zoos as they attempt to "salvage" animals from certain extinction due to climate change, habitat loss and deadly introduced species. "There's a kind of rather serious, almost dark side to zoos now in that we are in biological salvage," he told AFP.

>>>FULL ARTICLE

Kern National Wildlife Refuge Faces Avian Cholera Outbreak
KERO 23 News - www.turnto23.com
15 Jan 2009
Area: Kern National Wildlife Refuge, Kern County, California, USA - Map It

Hunters at the Kern National Wildlife Refuge received quite a warning this week, that they'll find dead birds in the wetlands not killed during the hunt. So far hundreds of waterfowl have died from a disease called Avian, or Waterfowl, Cholera at the refuge. While it sounds bad, it is one of the most common diseases among waterfowl in the states and is known to our area, but poses no known threat to humans. Scott Frazer, a Private Lands Biologist for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service was on the hunt for waterfowl felled by Avian Cholera, Thursday morning.

>>>FULL ARTICLE

Shedding Light On Emerging Seaborne Pathogen
ScienceDaily - www.sciencedaily.com (Source: University of Deleware)
21 Jan 2009
Photo credit: Centers for Disease Control/Janice Carr

A new research study at the University of Delaware seeks to determine why Vibrio parahaemolyticus, a microorganism that lives in seawater and is related to the bacterium that causes cholera, is expanding its range and virulence. Vibrio parahaemolyticus is a leading cause of seafood-borne illness worldwide, most frequently associated with the consumption of raw or undercooked seafood, particularly oysters and other mollusks, and crabs. Victims typically suffer from diarrhea, vomiting, fever and chills for a few days, although the infection can be fatal in those with weakened immune systems. “This organism has been around for a long time,” says Michelle Parent, assistant professor of medical technology at the University of Delaware and a co-investigator on the study.

>>>FULL ARTICLE

Bird flu hunters to fly with wild ducks
The Standard - www.thestandard.com.hk
22 Jan 2009
A Wong
Area: Hong Kong

Hong Kong University researchers are using migratory wild ducks tagged with satellite transmitters to trace their annual flights in a study on the spread of avian flu viruses. Partners in the project are World Wide Fund For Nature Hong Kong, US Geological Survey, and the Empres-Wildlife Unit from the Food and Agriculture Organization, with help from the Agriculture, Fisheries and Conservation Department. Two dozen ducks were tagged last December. The ducks usually winter in Hong Kong and continue their flight in spring. "We anticipate the project will reveal more information about the link between their migration and involvement, if any, in the spread of avian influenza viruses," a university spokeswoman said.

>>>FULL ARTICLE

Community Diversity Reduces Schistosoma Mansoni Transmission, Host Pathology, And Human Infection Risk
Medical News Today - www.medicalnewstoday.com
21 Jan 2009

Global biodiversity loss and disease emergence are two of the most challenging issues confronting science and society. Growing evidence suggests that these trends are related, with decreases in biodiversity leading to enhanced disease in human and wildlife populations. Here, we show experimentally that increases in snail community diversity cause a 25-50% reduction in transmission of the human blood fluke, Schistosoma mansoni, which alternates between snail and human hosts. Snails from diverse communities suffered less pathology and produced 60-80% fewer cercariae â€" the infectious stage to humans.

>>>FULL ARTICLE

OTHER WILDLIFE HEALTH RELATED NEWS
Photo credit: BBC News - news.bbc.co.uk