TOP STORIES
VOA News - www.voanews.com
04 Aug 2009
J Berman
Photo credit: A Houle
An international team of researchers reports that the malaria parasite that causes the worst form of the disease in humans originally jumped the species barrier from an ancestor of chimpanzees. Scientists say the discovery could lead to better treatments for malaria.
Both humans and chimpanzees, our closest primate relative, can become infected with a mosquito-borne parasite that causes malaria.
The human parasite known as plasmodium falciparum causes malignant malaria, the deadliest form of the disease, which sickens an estimated 500 million people globally each year, killing more than one million individuals, most of them children.
Coronavirus, vampire bat - Brazil - Archive Number 20090803.2729
ProMED-mail - www.promedmail.org
03 Aug 2009
Hematophagous bats, also known as "vampire bats" are carriers of a virus that causes diseases such as severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS), Brazilian researchers reported. The Research Support Foundation of the State of Sao Paulo (FAPESP), which funded the project, announced today [3 Aug 2009] that the work of the University of Sao Paulo (USP) identified the presence of such viruses in vampire bats (_Desmodus rotundus_).
This type of bat, which feeds on blood of animals and can bite humans, in addition to transmitting diseases such as rabies, can also be a vector for transmitting the diseases caused by coronaviruses. [Coronaviruses] can cause intestinal problems, respiratory, and even the cerebral problems in birds and mammals, including humans.
August Science Picks -- Leads, Feeds and Story SeedsUSGS Newsroom - www.usgs.gov/newsroom
04 Aug 2009
- The Battle: Fish, Estrogen and Survival
- Are Invasive Fish on a Crash Diet?
- Endangered Frog Takes a Leap Forward
- Guzzlers Satisfy Summer Thirst of Desert Bighorn Sheep
- Honey Mesquite: A Migrant Songbird's Cue to Good Eats
- Hair of the Grizzly Bear
- Horn-ucopia of Coast Horned Lizards
- Of Farmers and Frogs: Good News for Mississippi Conservation!
Disease Risks When Moving Wildlife To New Areas: Endangered Laysan Duck Cautionary Tale
ScienceDaily - www.sciencedaily.com (Source: USGS)
03 Aug 2009
Laysan ducks, one of the world's most endangered waterfowl, are native to only the Hawaiian archipelago. For 150 years, Laysan ducks were restricted to an estimated 4 square kilometers of land on Laysan Island in the northwestern Hawaiian Islands.
In 2004 and 2005, in an effort to rebuild the population, biologists released 42 Laysan ducks on Midway Atoll, located one day's boat ride from Laysan.
By 2007, a breeding population was well established on Midway, reaching 200 ducks. However, in August 2008, more than half of the Midway duck population (181 ducks) was lost to a disease epidemic lasting 30 days.
OTHER WILDLIFE HEALTH RELATED NEWS
Photo credit: US Fish and Wildlife Service
American Bird Conservancy Petitions EPA to Ban Import of Food Containing Deadly Pesticide Residues
- Koala saved from Australian fires battling disease
- Filter-Feeding Bivalves Can Remove Avian Influenza Viruses From Water And Reduce Infectivity
- Rate of chronic wasting disease up in state deer, DNR says [WI]
- Intel boosts Facebook users power for research
- Prion diseases found in affected sheep's milk 20 months before animals develop symptoms
- New vaccine could save bees from colony collapse disorder
- Bovine TB infects farms in southeast Indiana area
- Coral Reefs Face Increasing Difficulties Recovering From Storm Damage
- Shipwrecks Wrecking Coral Reefs? A Case Study At Palmyra Atoll National Wildlife Refuge
