TOP STORIES
FWC and Partners Continue to Monitor Birds for Avian Influenza
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC), the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Wildlife Services and partner agencies are wrapping up a five-year avian influenza monitoring project. The project was designed to determine if migratory birds carried the Asian strain of the highly pathogenic avian influenza (H5N1) virus to the U.S. All samples collected by the FWC and other state partners tested negative for any highly pathogenic strains.
Biologists started the project in 2006 in an effort to rapidly detect and quickly respond should a highly pathogenic strain reach the U.S. There have been no reported cases of avian influenza in humans in the United States but a number of people in other countries became sick or died from that virus after extensive, direct contact with infected poultry. The USDA and its partners collected more than 450,000 samples nationwide, including 5,200 plus samples from Florida.
In Florida, much of the success of this project came from the voluntary participation of duck hunters who allowed biologists to sample the birds they harvested.
21 Jul 2011
Location: Florida, USA
Oil spill endangers lake's wildlife
An oil spill at a lake in Stratton has raised fears for the safety of the wildlife there.
On Tuesday morning, people visiting Claridges Lake, off Swindon Road, were shocked to see thick black oil on the surface of the water.It could also be seen on the banks of the lake and the surrounding rocks and trees.
It is thought an oil barrel which was found dumped near the lake was the cause of the damage.... called the environment agency on Tuesday and was passed on to Swindon Council, which is responsible for the lake.
He said the fish were struggling to breathe and the ducks were covered in oil.
22 Jul 2011
M Edwards
Location: Swindon United Kingdom - Map It
[Mortality among terns reminiscent of botulism][Translation disclaimer]
Bird experts have started an investigation into the sudden deaths among the colony of common terns on the island Sterne in the eastern breakwater in Zeebrugge.
... According to ornithologists,... it was obvious symptoms of the disease or whose blue botulism.
Dolphins' 'Remarkable' Recovery from Injury Offers Important Insights for Human Healing
A Georgetown University Medical Center (GUMC) scientist who has previously discovered antimicrobial compounds in the skin of frogs and in the dogfish shark has now turned his attention to the remarkable wound healing abilities of dolphins.A dolphin's ability to heal quickly from a shark bite with apparent indifference to pain, resistance to infection, hemorrhage protection, and near-restoration of normal body contour might provide insights for the care of human injuries, says Michael Zasloff, M.D., Ph.D.
21 Jul 2011
Photo courtesy of Science Daily
OTHER WILDLIFE HEALTH RELATED NEWS
Photo courtesy of The Guardian, Week in Wildlife
Cardiff University Otter Project roadkill study results [Location: United Kingdom]- Western researchers receive $600,000 to study Prion diseases and Alzheimer's [Location: Canada]
- Parasites Help Reveal New Ecological Rules: Animal Species Large and Small Follow Same Rule for How Common They Are in Ecosystems [Cited journal article][USGS Newsroom press release]
- [Romania Confirms First West Nile Infection This Year] [human case] [Location: Galati Cty, Romania - Map It ] [Translation disclaimer]
- [Argentine researchers detect contaminated fish in the river Uruguay] [Location: Argentina - Map It and Uruguay - Map It ] [Translation disclaimer]
- [Biologists ODS and Chubut sperm whale necropsy performed] [Location: Chubut, Argentina - Map It ] [Translation disclaimer]
Ain't All Bad News
- Successful release of seabirds at Foxton [Location: New Zealand]
