TOP STORIES
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| The researchers estimated the "fundamental thermal niche" of a parasite, the area between the lowest and highest temperature in which a specific parasite prospers. An organism already living at the high end could die out when things heat up. Parasites lingering at the low end could extend to new areas, which would expose human and animal populations to new diseases. (Illustration by Matilda Luk) |
Knowing the temperatures that viruses, bacteria, worms and all other parasites need to grow and survive could help determine the future range of infectious diseases under climate change, according to new research.
Princeton University researchers developed a model that can identify the prospects for nearly any disease-causing parasite as the Earth grows warmer, even if little is known about the organism. Their method calculates how the projected temperature change for an area would alter the creature's metabolism and life cycle, the researchers report in the journal Ecology Letters.
News at Princeton - www.princeton.edu
25 Feb 2013
M Kelly
Cited Journal Article
PK Molnar et al. Metabolic approaches to understanding climate change impacts on seasonal host-macroparasite dynamics. 2013 Jan; 16(1): 9-21. doi: 10.1111/ele.12022
W.Va. fisheries biologists using new methods
... Chris O'Bara, a fish biologist for more than 30 years, has seen what he calls "a dramatic change" in the way he and his colleagues conduct their affairs.
... Advances in medical pathology have helped biologists better understand how disease can affect both wild and hatchery-grown fish populations. "Early on, the only diseases we worried about were those that affected the fish we were growing in our hatcheries," O'Bara said. "We never thought about diseases in wild populations. We figured most fish kills were caused by environmental problems."
That began to change when scientists trained in medical pathology started applying their expertise to fish.
"Now a lot of the people studying fish diseases are 'fish veterinarians.' They're giving us medications and techniques we can use to control disease in our hatcheries and, as a result, stock healthier fish," O'Bara said.
San Francisco Chronicle - www.sfgate.com
25 Feb 2013
J McCoy
OTHER WILDLIFE HEALTH NEWS
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| Kentucky counties confirmed: Carter, Christian, Letcher, Warren | Kentucky counties suspect: Hart | Pennsylvania county suspect: York. Source: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service |
]- Updated White-Nose Syndrome Map - 2013 Feb 21 [See map above]
- Fungus attacks Smokies bats: Odd behavior linked to white-nosed syndrome [Great Smoky Mountains National Park, USA - See Global Wildlife Disease News Map ]
- Critics worry that elk plan could spread disease [South Dakota, USA]
- Wyoming testing chronic wasting disease vaccine [USA]
- Scores of birds found dead at Gold Coast school [Merrimac State High School, Queensland, Australia - Map It ]
- AIDS-like virus killing local koala population [Australia]
- Bats cull could make the problem worse, say wildlife groups [Bat lyssavirus][Australia]
- Siberian birds responsible for bird flu: DoLS [Digest Disclaimer]
- Dogs May Threaten Wildlife, Researchers Show
- Welsh scientists warning over reproductive health of male otters
It Ain't All Bad News
- Sea turtles nursed back to health after record rescue from cold [South Carolina, USA]
- Crows return after West Nile die-off [The Audubon Society’s Christmas Bird Count indicated that the bird population may be back to pre-virus levels in Illinois, and recovering part of its numbers in Missouri.][USA]
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