Wildlife Disease Journal Digest and Letter of Support Campaign

Thanks to Our Friends at SEANET for their On-Going Support

Our friends at the Seabird Ecological Assessment Network (SEANET) recently called out to their network of friends and volunteers to ask them to consider sharing a letter of support for the Wildlife Data Integration Network (WDIN) and the products and services our team provides, such as the Wildlife Disease News and Journal Digest.

If you are a big fan and want to help too, write your own letter and tell us why you value WDIN, and how the project can grow to meet the increasing need for wildlife health information. Need a little help to get started?  You can read a copy of the support letter from SEANET that they shared on their blog last week, or find a suggested letter template here: http://www.wdin.org/documents/wher/letterofsupportforwdin-template_final.docx .

As we seek future opportunities, these letters will help to demonstrate support and need as we approach new potential funding sources or collaborators who might be unfamiliar with our work. In addition, the ideas you share on expanding and enhancing WDIN’s products and services will be used to direct our future priorities to ensure we meet the growing needs of WDIN’s user community.

The WDIN team strongly believes in the work we are doing. Our desire is to secure funding that will enable us to continue our innovative efforts and expand our collaborations with great people and organizations, such as Drs. Julie Ellis and Sarah Courchesne with SEANET.  We feel fortunate that we have made so many great connections over the years with community members who share our passion and desire to work together in the pursuit of advancing capacities available to the wildlife health realm and beyond.

Email us a copy of your letter to wdin@wdin.org. If you have questions, email us at the same address or talk with us the old fashion way, by phone at 608.620.5565 or 608.262.7785.

Sincerely
The WDIN Team

Dr. Kurt Sladky
Megan Hines
Cris Marsh
Victoria Szewczyk

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Browse complete Digest publication library here.

Birds Shed RNA-Viruses According to the Pareto Principle
PLoS ONE. 2013; 8(8): e72611. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0072611
Jankowski MD, Williams CJ, Fair JM, Owen JC

Influenza A Virus Migration and Persistence in North American Wild Birds
PLoS Pathog. 2013; 9(8): e1003570. doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1003570
Bahl J, Krauss S, Kühnert D, Fourment M, Raven G, et al.

Persistence of low-pathogenic H5N7 and H7N1 avian influenza subtypes in filtered natural waters
Veterinary Microbiology. 2013 Oct 25; 166(3-4): 419–428. doi:10.1016/j.vetmic.2013.06.024
Anne Ahlmann Nielsen et al.

A meta-analysis of the effects of pesticides and fertilizers on survival and growth of amphibians
Sci Total Environ. 2013 Apr 1;449:150-6. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2013.01.056. Epub 2013 Feb 16.
Baker NJ, Bancroft BA, Garcia TS.
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23422494?dopt=Abstract

Identifying Probable Suicide Clusters in Wales Using National Mortality Data
PLoS ONE. 2013; 8(8): e71713. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0071713
Jones P, Gunnell D, Platt S, Scourfield J, Lloyd K, et al.

The Mongoose, the Pheasant, the Pox, and the Retrovirus
PLoS Biol. 2013; 11(8): e1001641. doi:10.1371/journal.pbio.1001641
Etienne L, Emerman M

Complete nucleotide sequence of encephalomyocarditis virus isolated from South china tigers in China
Genome Announc. 2013 Aug 29;1(4). pii: e00651-13. doi: 10.1128/genomeA.00651-13.
Liu H, Yan Q, He H.

Parasitic zoonoses: one health surveillance in northern Saskatchewan
PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2013;7(3):e2141. doi: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0002141. Epub 2013 Mar 21.
Schurer JM, Ndao M, Skinner S, Irvine J, Elmore SA, Epp T, Jenkins EJ.

Patent Angiostrongylus mackerrasae infection in a black flying fox (Pteropus alecto)[Short Contribution]
Australian Veterinary Journal. 2031 Sep; 91(9): 366–367. [Epub ahead of print 2013 Aug 27]. DOI: 10.1111/avj.12082
JT Mackie, C Lacasse, DM Spratt

Characterization of recombinant H9N2 influenza viruses isolated from wild ducks in China
Veterinary Microbiology. 2013 Oct 25; 166(3–4); 327–336. doi:10.1016/j.vetmic.2013.05.013
Guangjian Zhu et al.

Host immune responses of ducks infected with H5N1 highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses of different pathogenicities
Veterinary Microbiology. 2013 Oct 25; 166(3–4): 386–393. doi:10.1016/j.vetmic.2013.06.019
Liangmeng Wei et al.

Wildlife researchers running the permit maze
ILAR J. 2013 Jan;54(1):14-23. doi: 10.1093/ilar/ilt013
Paul E, Sikes RS.

Detection of Helicobacter species in the gastrointestinal tract of ringtail possum and koala: Possible influence of diet, on the gut microbiota
Veterinary Microbiology. 2013 Oct 25; 166(3-4); 429–437. doi:10.1016/j.vetmic.2013.06.026
Thosaporn Coldham et al.

Molecular characterization of Trypanosoma (Megatrypanum) spp. infecting cattle (Bos taurus), white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus), and elk (Cervus elaphus canadensis) in the United States
Veterinary Parasitology. 2013 Oct 18; 197(1–2): 29–42. doi:10.1016/j.vetpar.2013.04.037
Amanda C. Fisher et al.

Nutrias and muskrats as bioindicators for the presence of Echinococcus multilocularis in new endemic areas
Veterinary Parasitology. 2013 Oct 18; 197(1–2): 283–287. doi: 10.1016/j.vetpar.2013.05.003
Gerald Umhang et al.

Spatial and temporal interactions between livestock and wildlife in South Central Spain assessed by camera traps
Preventive Veterinary Medicine. 2013; [Epub ahead of print 2013 Aug 27]
E. Kukielka et al.

In the Spotlight: A New Look for the Australian Wildlife Health Network

The Australian Wildlife Health Network
A guest blogger on the Wildlife Disease News Digest

The Australian Wildlife Health Network (AWHN) recently updated the look and feel of our website. Our main home page address can still be found at: www.wildlifehealth.org.au but you will need to update any other shortcuts you have to other areas of the website.

Have a look around the website and check out what’s new!  For example, we have a new Resources page  (this replaces our previous ‘Bulletin Board”) which provides links to current wildlife health information and resources using a number of different categories and areas of interest with a focus on Australia. Click on the link and explore.

We have also reorganised our Useful Links page. If you would like to post some news or a key wildlife health resource – please let us know.  Find out more about our Programs and Projects or download our current or previous Newsletters. And of course our Fact Sheets are also still available.

For those living or visiting Australia, don't forget that you can report any suspicious signs of disease or deaths in wildlife by contacting your local AWHN Wildlife Coordinator.

An Invitation to the Network

The AWHN aims to link, inform and support people and organisations who work with or have an interest in wildlife health across Australia through technical advice, facilitation, communications and professional support. By joining the Network, you become an AWHN subscriber whose benefits include:

• Receiving a weekly electronic digest by email of wildlife health information relevant to Australia and the Region
• Receiving ad hoc disease incident notifications and information requests via email, and
• The opportunity to contribute articles, requests and information to the digest

Learn how to join at: http://www.wildlifehealth.org.au/AboutUs1/JointheNetwork.aspx 

A Big Thanks!

AWHN would like to thank all of our Supporters (click on link to view who they are) and say a special thank you to everyone involved in updating the website.

Sincerely,
The Australian Wildlife Health Network Team


Share What You Know: Be Our Next Guest Writer for the Digest

Since the inception of the Wildlife Disease News Digest, we have always encouraged you, our readers, to share your wildlife health related announcements.  If you are excited about something happening in your organization or with your work, we, along with the rest of the Digest community, want to hear about it.

Use the Digest to share your announcements about the latest wildlife disease developments, education and employment opportunities, or any other tidbits of information that you feel is valuable. Don't be shy.  If you don't want to write your own announcement, just tell us about it and we will take it from there, but you have to email us your ideas at digest@wdin.org.  Help your community of Digest readers stay abreast of the ever changing landscape of wildlife disease.

Bird Mortality/Morbidity Cases Still being Reported along the Northeastern US Coastline and more wildlife disease news

TOP STORIES

The Digest is Back! Did you Miss Us?

We are back!  Now that we're refreshed from our break, the WDIN is eager to continue providing you the latest wildlife disease news and developments. If you missed the Digest while we were away, consider how you can support our work to continue to collect and share these important updates. See our Support page to learn about financial support options, and check out these other non-monetary ways that you can help, too:

• Share the goodness of the Digest. Tell your friends and colleagues!
• Let us know about upcoming grant opportunities that fund data/information integration and/or surveillance work.
• Suggest names of people or organizations with similar interests that we should know about or may be able to collaborate with. Send your ideas to digest@wdin.org

The Wildlife Data Integration Network (WDIN) team integrates wildlife disease news from multiple sources for the Digest. In addition, through the Wildlife Health Event Reporter, we are integrating current wildlife disease event data to provide near real-time information about wildlife health incidences, and sharing this information with anyone who visits the WHER site or signs up for alerts. WHER makes it easy for groups to communicate across organization lines about events they are seeing in their area, fostering collaborative response and awareness, as well as provides a long-term archive for event information, fostering future research.    

We Work Better When We Work Together

Together we can make a difference in controlling disease, when we do a better job of broadening access to information about disease events

[Presentation - Zoonotic Diseases: Their Natural and Unnatural Histories by Dr. Billy Karesh, EcoHealth Alliance].

The WDIN team has a passion for promoting awareness about wildlife disease news and emerging events, but we need your support to keep our work moving forward.  Invest in the Digest - through a donation, sharing the Digest with others, or by contacting us about possible opportunities.

Thanks from the WDIN Team!


Bird Mortality/Morbidity Cases Still being Reported along the Northeastern US Coastline

Hey Digest Readers, Sightings of dead and sick razorbills are still being reported to the Wildlife Health Event Reporter from locations along the Northeastern US coastline.

Since March 21, 2013, the following events of dead animals were reported. For more details, visit the WHER site.

1 Canada Goose - New London Co., Connecticut
3 American woodcocks - Norfolk Co., Massachusetts
1 Common Loon - Dukes Co., Massachusetts
1 Razorbills - Dukes Co., Massachusetts
2 Seals - Dukes Co., Massachusetts
4 Razorbills - Barnstable Co., Massachusetts

The Seabird Ecological Assessment Network (SEANET) citizen science program continues to monitor and capture information and photos of mortalities from this area - so if you are a volunteer with SEANET, keep your eyes open!  If you're not a Seanetter, report your observations of dead/sick birds to the WHER at www.wher.org. Your observations are valuable! Each report expands our baseline knowledge and understanding of disease ecology! 


Chronic Wasting Disease in Kansas

The photos are of a 3.5+ white-tailed deer in Sherman County, Kansas. The photos were taken on 23 October 2012 by Mike Hopper, Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism (KDWPT) Natural Resource Officer.

This series of photos is the first ever of a living, symptomatic, CWD-positive animal in Kansas. The animal was euthanized shortly after the photos were taken and RPLNs (retropharyngeal lymph nodes) were tested at Kansas State Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory a few months later, confirming CWD.

This information was provided by a fellow Digest reader from the Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism.

All photo credits to Mike Hopper, KDWPT.

More CWD News
>>> More Chronic Wasting Disease Found In Missouri Deer [View location of news reports on the Global Wildlife Disease News Map]



Scientists to investigate coral crisis on Kauai's north shore

Look beneath the surface of Kauai's north shore and you'll see what marine biologists are calling an epidemic. Video taken from Anini on Kauai's northeast coast shows coral covered with white bacteria, which is deteriorating much of the reef.

"The disease is a tissue-loss disease," said USGS Wildlife Disease Specialist Thierry Work. "If you look at these corals, they are losing tissues and we think it's associated with a cyanobacteria, which is a type of algae that is eating the coral basically."

Marine biologist Terry Lilley started documenting the disease when he noticed how quickly it was spreading. "I went all over the north shore to over 60 different dive sites within 30 days," Lilley said. "Everywhere we went on the north shore, this disease had already killed a lion's share of the reef."

The USGS estimates that about six percent of Kauai's reef has been infected. Before scientists can figure out a cure, they need to find what is causing it.

HawaiiNewsNow - www.hawaiinewsnow.com

02 Apr 2013

M Carpenter

Location: Kauai, Hawaii, USA - Map It

>>> FULL ARTICLE

OTHER WILDLIFE HEALTH RELATED NEWS

• The Threat of Emerging and Re-emerging Infectious Diseases to Wildlife [National Geographic]
• Wildlife officials to euthanize diseased bighorn sheep [Pneumonia] [Tieton, Washington - Map It ]

Marine Wildlife Health News

• 2013 California Sea Lion Unusual Mortality Event in California [California, USA]
• Harbor Porpoise Washes Up on N. Oregon Coast Beach [Oregon, USA - Map It ]
• Gulf St Vincent to be tested to explain dead penguins, fish and dolphins on Adelaide beaches [Adelaide, Australia - Map It ]
• Brevard's manatee, pelican deaths still a mystery: Count rises as algae, parasites get a look [Brevard Co., Florida, USA - Map It   ]

White-Nose Syndrome

• In A Cave Of 10,000 Bats, Only 23 Survive: Mysterious Disease Killing Bats Across America
• Department Continues to Battle White-Nose Syndrome in Bats [Vermont, USA]
• More Mo. bats diagnosed with deadly disease[View location of news reports on Global Wildlife Disease News Map ]

Bird Health News

• Feeder birds succumbing to salmonella poisoning [New York, USA - Map It ]
• 1,000 Dead Ducks Found In China's Nanhe River; Pig Carcass Count Continues To Rise [Nanhe River, China - Map It ]
• 7 eagles believed to have become sick after eating tainted horse meat [Lewis Co., Washington, USA - Map It ]
• Oily ducks found after thousands of gallons of oil spill in Arkansas [Little Rock, Arkansas, USA - Map It ]
• Late Ontario winter weather starving birds of prey [Ontario, Canada - Map It ]

One Health News Corner

• Third death from H7N9 bird flu [China]
• State of Emergency Declared in Chelyabinsk Over Rabies Outbreak [Chelyabinsk, Russia]
• Plano to Track Birds in Hopes of Preventing West Nile Virus [Plano, Texas, USA]

In the Spotlight: 2012 Funding Campaign - Thank You for All You Did!

Hello Readers,

Our 2012 fundraising campaign has ended. Thanks to everyone for enduring the campaign messages, for sharing all of your great fundraising ideas, and most importantly, for all your generous contributions. While we did not make our target, the Digest will continue on a more limited basis.

Even though our readership continues to grow (we gained over 500 new readers in 2012!), we will be unable to continue to provide the Digest at the frequency you have enjoyed for the last 6 years. Since losing base support from the National Biological Information Infrastructure in 2010, we must generate support from our community to help keep this important resource online. We will still bring you the latest wildlife disease related news and developments. But, in the near future, we will publish the news issues of the Digest twice a week. In addition, the Wildlife Disease Journal Digest will continue to be published on Wednesdays. Friday’s ‘In the Spotlight’ issues will also continue be published, just not weekly.

We have established a ‘Support Page’ that readers can access at anytime which provides information about options that you or your institution can use to support the Digest and WDIN's other products and services. If you have not made a contribution, look for the option that works best for you and give today!

Support through an Institutional Subscription
Institutions interested in supporting the Digest and other WDIN products and services can review our subscription levels and choose the level that works for you and begin receiving the benefits for signing up. If you use the Digest, please present this option to the person at your institution who is best able to make the commitment to support at this level. Only you can champion the value the Digest provides to you and your work.

Support through a Professional Individual Subscription
A wildlife professional can get an individual subscription through their business account. To begin the process, complete the request form and an invoice will be issued to your organization. You will have the option to pay by check or credit card. Many readers have found this to be a great way to support the Digest as a business expense through their work funds.

Make an Individual Donation
Through the University of Wisconsin Foundation, different giving options are available, including one-time gifts, annual or monthly pledges. Find the one that works for you and donate now. (To mail in your donation, download printable donation form HERE.) Your donation may be tax deductible under the IRS guidelines based on your personal tax situation.

Share Your Funding Ideas
Tell us about upcoming grant requests for proposals and other funding opportunities that you feel match our mission to increase access to wildlife health information and data. Email your ideas to us at digest@wdin.org. If your organization is applying for grant funds and we can be involved with data integration, contact us to discuss possibilities to collaborate on a grant! Check out our other products (link to product list paper) to see if we can help you further in your work in wildlife health.

Send a Letter of Support!
As we apply for grants and other funding opportunities, your testimony about the benefits you gain from WDIN’s products and services are crucial to demonstrating the need for our work to potential funders. Please consider writing a short letter of endorsement for our efforts that we can include as supporting documentation for upcoming opportunities. You can email it to us at digest@wdin.org.

We love keeping you informed!
WDIN Team

Dr. Kurt Sladky
Cris Marsh
Megan Hines
Victoria Szewczyk

In the Spotlight: WDIN Presented 'Discover Novel Wildlife Health Information'

January 29th was a dark and stormy night, but many braved the slush and rain to hear the Wildlife Data Integration Network (WDIN) team talk about our work as invited presenters in the Global Health Seminar Series, hosted by the University of Wisconsin - Madison, Global Health Institute.

Our presentation, Discovering Novel Wildlife Health Information, showcased the methods, techniques and products we are developing and using to standardize disparate wildlife disease data and information so that they can be integrated, disseminated and visualized.  We explained how we make this information accessible to the public, researchers and decision-makers enabling them to gain new knowledge and a better understanding of wildlife health issues in support of the One Health Initiative.

Screenshot of presentation recording. Turn it up and listen!

We were thrilled to have the opportunity to talk about our work and its potential to support the Global Health community.  The audience was engaged and posed great follow-up questions and suggestions to improve our projects and better target our user audience.

We are excited to share the video recording of the presentation which is about one hour in length (get the popcorn!) and can be found online at:  http://videos.med.wisc.edu/videos/45007

Other presentations in the Global Health Series are also available for viewing online through their archives. This collection of GREAT presentations on global health topics includes a talk by Dr. Hon Ip from the USGS National Wildlife Health Center presenting on the Global Influenza Crisis.  

If you are interested in learning more about WDIN's work, contact us at digest@wdin.org.  We are always looking for collaboration opportunities, especially related to wildlife health surveillance efforts. 

Cris Marsh, WDIN Content Manager, showing
off the announcement flyer for our presentation

For More Information:

• Links to projects described in the presentation [pdf]
• An overview of WDIN [pdf]
• Presentation slides [pdf]

Don't forget to look for us on Twitter and Facebook! All updates to the Digest - including announcements, calendar events, news stories, journal articles and more - are delivered to our followers through those channels, too.

'Like' us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WDINNews
Follow us on Twitter: https://twitter.com/WDIN_News

>>> TO WDIN PRESENTATION VIDEO

In the Spotlight: WDIN Presents at the International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council Symposium

Figure 1: IWRC conference logo

The Wildlife Data Integration Network had the privilege of presenting at the 34th Annual International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council (IWRC) Symposium in Appleton, Wisconsin on Thursday, November 15. The theme of the symposium was 'The Science of Wildlife Rehabilitation' and focused on the role wildlife rehabilitators play within the scientific community in the areas of wildlife conservation and restoration.

The compassionate work by wildlife rehabilitators to nurse sick and injured wildlife can contribute to the better understanding wildlife disease phenomenon. Through our presentation, Wildlife Health Event Reporter (WHER): An Online Tool for Monitoring and Recording Wildlife Health Observations, we explained that information about the events rehabilitators respond to and the data they collect for their wildlife care cases are highly desired.

Figure 2: WHER homepage and URL

We shared our interest in working with the wildlife rehab community to establish methods of importing existing datasets (old and new) into WHER.

Incorporating these data into the WHER system (www.wher.org) would support a shared wildlife health community goal of establishing a baseline understanding for wildlife morbidity and mortality, which could lead to forecasting future disease outbreaks and identifying areas of concern. The WHER system and data are publicly available for everyone to use and see. (See figure 3 for who would use WHER and how).


In addition, we outlined the benefits WHER can provide to individual rehabbers and wildlife care centers (all are applicable to any other organization):

Strengthen public relations - When contacted by concerned citizens about a wild animal that cannot be helped (e.g. not contained or is already dead), wildlife care centers can direct the public to enter their helpful wildlife health observation into WHER.

Receive report alerts - After subscribing individuals can receive alerts any time a report is contributed to WHER or limit alerts to specific geographic areas (e.g. state or administrative equivalent).

Provide contact instructions - We currently provide and are seeking additional information to share with submitters from external organizations or agencies to provide details about when and how to notify their group directly about the wildlife health observations that are of interest to their agency or research(e.g. the number of animals observed, the location of the health event, and the species involved).

Cross-communication among organizations - For the next disaster that impacts wildlife (e.g. hurricane, oil spill, disease outbreak), WHER can be used to coordinate and manage response and awareness efforts across multiple organizations.

Other benefits - To learn about other WHER benefits, flip through our presentation HERE.

Figure 3: Target audiences for timely WHER information

One incidental report of a dead/sick wild animal may seem irrelevant, but when viewed aggregated with observations from other individuals it can enhance the big picture and provide a better understanding of what is happening across the landscape.

WHER was built to serve as a near-real time wildlife disease surveillance and communication tool, but its effectiveness and future success depends upon collecting a robust dataset from multiple sources, including the public, wildlife rehabilitators, and other organizations/agencies concerned about wildlife disease.

Everyone is Invited to Make a Difference - Share Your Wildlife Health Observations!

Whether you are a wildlife rehabber, wildlife professional, or an everyday citizen concerned about wildlife, your wildlife health observations are valuable and contribute to the collective and growing knowledge base.

Create an account today and start exploring the system and its over 5,000 wildlife health reports. If your organization has a dataset or a live feed of publicly available wildlife health data, or just has questions, contact us at wher@wdin.org. We would love to hear from you!

>>> TO WILDLIFE HEALTH EVENT REPORTER (WHER)

 >>> TO OVERVIEW VIDEO OF WHER

>>> TO IWRC PRESENTATION [pdf]

>>> TO IWRC WEBSITE

Wildlife Disease Journal Digest

Comments shared by readers from a survey conducted in 2010

The Wildlife Data Integration Network (WDIN) has been publishing the Wildlife Disease News Digest since 2005. Over the last seven years, readers have come to rely on the Digest and other WDIN products and services for timely wildlife health data and information.

Now we are relying on you, our readers, to help raise $40,000 by Dec 31, 2012 to ensure the continued availability of the Digest in 2013.

To date we have received about $450.  A BIG THANKS to those of you who have already donated. Only $39,550 to go to reach our goal!  If each of our 2,700 readers contributed only $15 annually, we would meet and exceed our goal.  Is the Digest worth $1.25 per month for an annual contribution of $15?   Maybe more, maybe less? No matter the amount, any contribution is appreciated and gets us that much closer to our goal.

If you look forward to starting your day with the Wildlife Disease News Digest, consider making a contribution. Through the University of Wisconsin Foundation, different giving options are available, including one-time gifts, or annual or monthly pledges. Find one that works for you here.

Not is a position to make a monetary contribution? You can still help!

1. We would love to hear from you about upcoming grant proposals or funding opportunities that you feel match our work to increase access to wildlife health information and data. (See WDIN products factsheet).
2. Ask your company, university, or agency if they would be willing to sponsor the Digest, a source of information which you have come to rely on for the latest news and developments on wildlife health issues.  

We love keeping you informed.  With your support, we can keep on publishing the Digest for everyone's benefit.

Sincerely,
The WDIN Team

Cris Marsh
Megan Hines
Vicki Szewczyk
Dr. Kurt Sladky

>>> DONATE

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Browse complete Digest  publication library here.

Real-time PCR as a surveillance tool for the detection of Trichinella infection in muscle samples from wildlife
Vet Parasitol. 2012 Sep 10;188(3-4):285-93. Epub 2012 Apr 4.
L Cuttell et al.

Predator Crown-of-Thorns Starfish (Acanthaster planci) Outbreak, Mass Mortality of Corals, and Cascading Effects on Reef Fish and Benthic Communities
PLoS ONE. 2012; 7(10): e47363. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0047363
M Kayal et al.

Poisoning from lead gunshot: still a threat to wild waterbirds in Britain
European Journal of Wildlife Research. 2012; [Epub ahead of print]. doi:10.1007/s10344-012-0666-7
JL Newth et al.

Spatial and temporal variation of whirling disease risk in montana spring creeks and rivers
J Aquat Anim Health. 2012 Dec;24(4):201-12. doi: 10.1080/08997659.2012.694833.
RA Neudecker et al.

Emerging myxosporean parasites of Australian frogs take a ride with fresh fruit transport
Parasit Vectors. 2012 Sep 24;5(1):208. [Epub ahead of print]
A Hartigan et al.

Towards a Better Integration of Global Health and Biodiversity in the New Sustainable Development Goals Beyond Rio+20
EcoHealth. 2012; [Epub ahead of print]. doi: 10.1007/s10393-012-0800-8
EV Langlois et al.

Detection of Toxoplasma gondii antibodies in Antarctic pinnipeds
Veterinary Parasitology. 2012 Nov; 190(1-2): 259-262
C Rengifo-Herrera et al.



Fatal disseminated blastomycosis in a free-ranging American black bear (Ursus americanus)
J Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation. 2012; [Epub ahead of print]
JA Dykstra at el.

Complete Genome Sequence of an H9N2 Avian Influenza Virus Isolated from Egret in Lake Dongting Wetland
J Virol. 2012 Nov; 86(21): 11939
B Wang et al.

The 27–year decline of coral cover on the Great Barrier Reef and its causes
PNAS. 2012; [Epub ahead of print]. doi:10.1073/pnas.1208909109
G De'ath et al.

Comparative Pathology and Ecological Implications of Two Myxosporean Parasites in Native Australian Frogs and the Invasive Cane Toad
PLoS ONE. 2012; 7(10): e43780. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0043780
A Hartigan et al.

Assessment of the health status of wild fish from the Wheatley Harbour Area of Concern, Ontario, Canada
Environment Toxicology and Chemistry. 2012; [Epub ahead of print]
EAM Gilroy et al.

The occurrence of Bovine viral diarrhea virus in hunter-harvested white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) in the state of Georgia, southeastern United States
J of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation. 2012; [Epub ahead of print]. doi:10.1177/1040638712462375
MRS Ilha et al.

Factors influencing long-term and seasonal waterbird abundance and composition at two adjacent lakes in Zimbabwe
Ostrich. 2012; 83(2): 69-77. doi: 10.2989/00306525.2012.692726

Molecular characterization of H3N2 and H4N6 subtypes avian influenza viruses isolated from mallards in Poyang Lake, China in 2010
Chinese Science Bulletin. 2012 Sep; 57(27): 3586-3594
N Zhu et al.

Uncovering text mining: a survey of current work on web-based epidemic intelligence
Glob Public Health. 2012;7(7):731-49. Epub 2012 Jul 11.
N Collier et al.

In the Spotlight: A Thank You from WDIN

Hello Digest Readers,

Last week during one of our fundraising announcements we asked you for your thoughts on fundraising opportunities. And you answered! A big THANK YOU for the great ideas that you shared and for the time and effort you took to pass them along. Keep them coming. As we mentioned before, WDIN is solely responsible for its financial health.

Support the Digest and other valuable WDIN services by:

• Making donations here.
• Emailing the Digest manager, Cris Marsh at cmmarsh2@wisc.edu with the information about funding opportunities and corporate contributions.

Help keep us online and enable us to continue to deliver the Wildlife Disease News Digest to your electronic doorstep.

Sincerely,
The WDIN Team

Cris Marsh
Megan Hines
Vicki Szewczyk
Dr. Kurt Sladky

Today's Wildlife Disease News Stories

Dear Digest Readers,

At the beginning of August we began our campaign to raise $40,000 to support the Digest and other WDIN products. To date we have received over $450. It is a good start. A big THANKS to those who have already made a contribution. However, we have quite a ways to go to reach our goal.

If you regularly use the Digest, consider making a contribution. Monetary donations are welcome, but there are other ways you can support the Digest.

1. We would love to hear from you about upcoming grant proposals or funding opportunities that you feel match our work to increase access to wildlife health information and data. (See WDIN products factsheet).
   
   
2. Ask your company, university, or agency if they would be willing to sponsor the Digest, a source of information which you have come to rely on for the latest news and developments on wildlife issues.

Support the Digest and other valuable WDIN services by: 

• Making donations here.
• Emailing the Digest manager, Cris Marsh at cmmarsh2@wisc.edu with the information about funding opportunities and corporate contributions.

Sincerely,
The WDIN Team

Cris Marsh
Megan Hines
Vicki Szewczyk
Dr. Kurt Sladky

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Top Stories

Scientists investigate Brisbane River fish kill

Scientists are investigating whether a virus is the cause of the deaths of thousands of catfish in the Brisbane River. A major clean-up is happening in Lowood today, west of Ipswich, with Somerset Regional Council staff helping scientists and rangers clean the Brisbane River of thousands of decaying catfish.

...He said scientists had told him this morning they believed "something natural, perhaps a virus" had triggered the fish kill.

...A spokeswoman for Seqwater, which monitors water quality, said they had not been notified of any unusual discharges from the water treatment at Lowood to the Brisbane River.

...Only catfish have died in the outbreak, suggesting a virus through the local fish population, rather than a spill would also effect the bass, bony bream and lungfish found in the river.

Mr Connor said the majority of the dead fish were found around Lowood, although small numbers of dead catfish were found upstream, close to Lockyer Creek.

Sydney Morning Herald - www.smh.com.au

19 Sep 2012

T Moore

Location: View locations of die off reported in the news in Queensland, Australia on
the Global Wildlife Disease News Map

>>> FULL ARTICLE

More Fish Health News

Mass Fish Death [Lakeview Park, Texas, USA - Map It ]

Botulism confirmed as cause of August duck die-off on Beaver Dam Lake

About 50 sick or dead ducks reported on Beaver Dam Lake in Dodge County in early August tested positive for botulism, federal wildlife health officials have confirmed.

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources wildlife officials investigated reports of ducks that appeared paralyzed and could not lift their heads or fly from August 10-13. Staff collected duck carcasses and samples were submitted to the U.S. Geological Survey National Wildlife Health Center in Madison. The center confirmed on Sept. 17 that the ducks tested positive for botulism type C toxin.

Wisconsin Dept of Natural Resources - dnr.wi.gov

17 Sep 2012

Location: Beaver Dam Lake, Wisconsin, USA - Map It

>>> FULL ARTICLE

Other Wildlife Health Related News

• World Rabies Day is September 28
• Department Expands Chronic Wasting Disease Control Areas [New Mexico, USA]
• ProMED Archive #20120917.1296946 - Bovine tuberculosis: badger control [England]
• Two degree rise will kill corals
• Warning issued for toxic algae discovery [United Kingdom]

Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease News

• Disease Suspected of Killing Thousands of Deer in Missouri [View location of cases reported in the news in Missouri, USA on the Disease News Map]
• EHD Deer Deaths More than Double in Kent County [Michigan, USA]

One Health News Corner

• AVMA One Health Headlines
• Deadly African Ebola Virus Linked to Bushmeat

Huh?! That's Interesting

• New DNA Method Tracks Fish and Whales in Seawater [Courtesy of a fellow Digest reader]

Help Keep the Digest Online!

We are sure that you recognize that current ecosystem health concerns demonstrate a critical need for timely access to global wildlife disease information. The Wildlife Data Integration Network (WDIN) plays a unique role in meeting this need, however, in the current economic environment, securing the necessary support to continue this work is challenging. Because of the benefits you receive, WDIN is looking to its users for financial assistance.

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Having Fun Engaging the Public in Wildlife Health Topics at the Wisconsin State Fair

Cris Marsh, WDIN's Content Manager, interacting with
Wisconsin State Fair visitors on "UW-Madison Day"

Recently, Cris Marsh from the Wildlife Data Integration Network (WDIN) and Christy Browne Nunez, a partner on the multidisciplinary Global Health Initiative project teamed up at the “UW-Madison Day” festivities at the Wisconsin State Fair.

Of the many events planned by the University of Wisconsin -Madison, WDIN hosted an “exploration station”. Fair visitors meandered through the various station tables, chatted with UW project teams, interacted with family-friendly hands-on activities, demonstrations, and games; seeing UW-Madison research in action.

Home page of the Wildlife Health Event Reporter

At WDIN’s station, we shared information about white-nose syndrome and how the disease is causing high rates of death in some species of bats in the United States. This fact and the future implications to agriculture and biodiversity due to declining bat populations, is a recent example of why people should care about wildlife health issues.

In today’s flatter world, as physical barriers between wildlife, domestic animals and humans narrows, the shared risk of disease has increased. [1] Gaining a better understanding about where and when wildlife health events are occurring can help to better protect the well –being of all living things.

Like many ecological issues, people can feel overwhelmed and wonder how they can make a difference against these challenges. One way individuals can help to limit the spread of disease and help further understand wildlife health is by observing and reporting sick and/or dead wild animals encountered during the course of their day-to- day activities. View a short video overview HERE and learn how anyone can easily make these reports online using the Wildlife Health Event Reporter, http://www.wher.org.

Bucky Wagon at Wisconsin State Fair

More on UW-Madison Day at the Wisconsin State Fair

>>> UW-Madison Day at Wisconsin State Fair features innovation, fun

>> The fun, food and festivity of UW-Madison Day at the Wisconsin State Fair

Do You have a Wildlife Health Event Observation to Report? 

Sign up for a WHER account at http://www.wher.org and add your own sightings to those that have already been contributed. To date, over 4,000 reports have been entered or imported into WHER. In less than 2 minutes, you can create an account. Take another 5 minutes and enter a report that will contribute to a greater understanding of wildlife disease phenomena.

>>> TO WILDLIFE HEALTH EVENT REPORTER

References
[1] Yale Human Animal Medicine.Moving from “Us vs. Them” to “Shared Risk”: Human and Animal Health are inextricably connected.

If it Disappeared, Would you Miss the Wildlife Disease News Digest?

The Wildlife Data Integration Network (WDIN) has gone through some positive changes over the past year. As of July 1, 2012, one such change was WDIN became part of the UW-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine. In addition, WDIN became a self-governing organization solely responsible for its own financial health. This new status provides WDIN with more independence, but it has also required us to take on the role of becoming fundraisers.

We need your financial support to continue the publication of the Wildlife Disease News Digest. In a 2010 survey of Digest readers, we learned how much you appreciate the Digest and have come to depend on it to keep current on the latest developments in global wildlife disease occurrences and research developments. Other important information revealed in the survey included:

• 87% of subscribers said they read the Digest daily to several times a week.
  
• 90% of subscribers felt the selected Digest stories always or frequently matched their interests.
  
• 88 % of subscribers said they would recommend the Digest to others. At the time of the survey, 83% of readers were occasionally to regularly sharing articles, and 68% of readers were already regularly or occasionally recommending the blog.

If you share the same sentiment as one fellow reader commented in the survey “I look forward to starting every morning with my cup of coffee or tea and the Wildlife Disease News Digest!” please follow this link, https://secure.supportuw.org/MultiPage/processStep1.do?seq=15228, show your support for the Digest and make a contribution that is meaningful to you.

Not including the administrative efforts it takes, on average, one staff member about 3 hours to publish one issue of the Digest. In order to fund the Digest and keep this highly valued service freely available to everyone, we need to raise $40,000 annually. Between email subscribers, RSS feed users and Twitter/Facebook followers, the Digest readership consists of over 2,700 members and that number continues to grow steadily.

How much have you come to depend on this unique source of wildlife disease information? Is the Digest worth $2 per month for an annual contribution of $24? Maybe more, maybe less? No matter the amount, any contribution is appreciated and gets us that much closer to our goal.

Please show your support and make a donation that is meaningful to you here at https://secure.supportuw.org/MultiPage/processStep1.do?seq=15228

We have enjoyed publishing the Digest since 2005 and with your donation we can continue to deliver the Wildlife Disease News Digest to you.

Kindest regards,
WDIN Team

In the Spotlight - A Video Presentation: Engaging the Public in Science and Research

On June 20, 2012, Dr. Joshua Dein (USGS National Wildlife Health Center, Veterinary Medical Officer) and Megan Hines (UW Madison School of Veterinary Medicine (SVM), Wildlife Data Integration Network (WDIN) Technical Manager) presented at the Wednesday Nite @ the Lab (WN@TL); a Wisconsin Alumni Association program at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. This interactive talk, Exploring the Impacts of Wildlife Diseases through Collaborations between Scientists and the Public, examined the current and potential effects of wildlife diseases to society and individuals and discussed steps everyday citizens can take to increase collective knowledge about wildlife health events and minimize their impacts.

The presentation began with Dr. Dein discussing the ecology of wildlife disease and why it is important to gather information about wildlife health events. He ended his portion of the program on the important contributions that public individuals have already made to further scientific knowledge through their participation in citizen science programs like eBird.


After the general information session, Megan demonstrated the Wildlife Health Event Reporter, an online observation reporting tool. Megan walked through how to report dead/sick/injured wild animals that attendees might come across in their daily lives, such as a dead squirrel on hike or a sick bird at the feeder in the backyard. Wildlife health event sightings like these – no matter how common or small – can offer critical clues to help researchers better understand the occurrence of wildlife disease.

The program ended with comments from Nancy Businga, a microbiologist from the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) Wildlife Health Program. She provided real-life examples where public reports about sick or dead wildlife lead to the quick response to an outbreak of a common bird infection, avian salmonellosis, in 2008. The public reports and early collection of fresh carcasses enabled a quick diagnosis and response.

Currently, about 75 percent of emerging infectious diseases affecting people originate from contact with wildlife [1], such as SARS, avian influenza, and West Nile virus, leading to increasing concern about these issues worldwide. If you share this concern, we invite you to watch the video recording of the presentation to learn more about the significance of wildlife disease and how citizens can help natural resource managers, researchers, public health officials and others in their efforts to protect the well-being of all living things and promote a healthy ecosystem. Each report makes a difference. It adds to a greater body of wildlife disease knowledge that can potentially assist in the detection of common disease events and biosecurity concerns, provide information to explore the interconnections between human, domestic animal and wildlife diseases, and help build baseline knowledge on wildlife mortality.

>>> WATCH VIDEO

This program is part of a multidisciplinary research study conducted with support from a grant awarded by the University of Wisconsin Global Health Institute.

The following study team members assisted in the development of this program:

USGS National Wildlife Health Center

• Dr. F. Joshua Dein – Veterinary Medical Officer

University of Wisconsin – Madison

• Megan Hines- Technical Manager, School of Veterinary Medicine, WDIN
• Christy Browne-Nunez - Post-Doctoral Research Associate, Nelson Institute for Environmental Studies
• Cris Marsh, Content Manager, School of Veterinary Medicine, WDIN
• Bret Shaw- Assistant Professor, Department of Life Sciences Communication

WHER was developed with support from the Global Emerging Infections Surveillance and Response System of the US Armed Forces Health Surveillance Center, the Environmental Protection Agency’s Great Lakes Restoration Initiative, and the former US Geological Survey’s National Biological Information Infrastructure. Technical development of WHER with UW Madison DoIT Academic Technology. WHER is managed and maintained by UW Madison’s School of Veterinary Medicine.
_____________________________________________
[1] AM Ramos and K Synder. (2012). Pilot study establishes the importance of tracking diseases associated with illegal wildlife trade at US ports. American Museum of Natural History. Retrived August 2, 2012 from http://www.amnh.org/science/papers/pilot_study_2012.php

In the Spotlight: Upcoming Wildlife Health Related Professional Opportunities

Upcoming Wildlife Health Related Professional Opportunities

Spain's National Wildlife Research Institute - Masters Course in Wildlife Research
The MSc in Wildlife Research consists of a three-month general training period, including scientific experimental design and scientific communication and specialization courses on wildlife ecology, wildlife diseases and wildlife genetics and reproduction. Eligible courses include epidemiology, statistics and GIS applied to wildlife disease control.

>>> MORE

Five Day Smithsonian-Mason School of Conservation Course - Managing Infectious Disease in Conservation Programmes
This five day course provides an overview of emerging infectious diseases, their connection to humans and their impact on wildlife health. The course considers the relationship between ecosystems, biodiversity and human health, and how anthropogenic change is driving the emergence of new diseases of concern to wildlife.

The course is designed for veterinary students and practitioners considering a shift into a career in conservation, and for biologists with an interest in wildlife health and its management.

>>> MORE

University of Florida Aquatic Animal Health Program - Diseases of Warmwater Fish
Diseases of Warmwater Fish is an intensive two-week class designed to provide instruction in the methodology of diagnosis and treatment of parasitic, bacterial, viral, nutritional, and environmental diseases of warmwater food fish and aquarium species. This course is open to students, veterinarians, fisheries biologists, aquaculturists, and professional aquarists. The course is offered by the University of Florida's Aquatic Animal Health Program and will be held at varying locations in Florida.

>>> MORE

ZSL Institute of Zoology Postgraduate Study - Masters Course in Wild Animal Health
The MSc in Wild Animal Health is taught jointly by the Institute of Zoology and the Royal Veterinary College. It aims to teach the principles and practice of managing all aspects of wild animal health, both in captivity and in the wild. Students learn alongside experts in the field, to acquire knowledge and skills in wild animal management and the epidemiology, treatment and control of disease.

>>> MORE

Find More Wildlife Health Related Learning Opportunities on the Digest's Professional Announcements Page

Figure 1: As highlighted in the image above with a red box,
open the page by clicking on the Professional Announcements'
title found in the Digest's menu near the top of the site. 

The Wildlife Data Integration Network team regularly provides wildlife disease related announcements about professional development activities, such as upcoming meetings, continuing education offers, and employment opportunities.  All of which can be found right here on the Digest.

After reading all the latest wildlife disease related news and developments, click on the Professional Announcements page (highlighted in Figure 1 with a red box) and learn about future activities and events of interest to those who share a concern about wildlife disease.   

If you have an announcement you would like to include, email the details about it to us at digest@wdin.org. If it relates to wildlife health, you will see it posted here. Your colleagues will appreciate your efforts!

>>> To all events on the Professional Announcement page