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Publications

View citations of publications by National Wildlife Health Center scientists since our founding in 1975.  Access to full-text is provided where possible.

Wildlife Health Bulletins

Sanderling on sand.

Wildlife Health Bulletins are distributed to natural resource/conservation agencies to provide and promote information exchange about significant wildlife health threats.

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Wildlife Disease Case Definitions

Lesser black-backed gull

Case definitions provide a standardized, science-based set of criteria for diagnosing disease and pathogens. This manual provides case definitions for selected diseases of importance to wildlife in Canada and the United States.

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Additional Resources

Filter Total Items: 1613

Aerosol transmission of gull-origin Iceland subtype H10N7 influenza A virus in ferrets

Subtype H10 influenza A viruses (IAVs) have been recovered from domestic poultry and various aquatic bird species, and sporadic transmission of these IAVs from avian species to mammals (i.e., human, seal, and mink) are well documented. In 2015, we isolated four H10N7 viruses from gulls in Iceland. Genomic analyses showed four gene segments in the viruses were genetically associated with H10 IAVs t
Authors
Minhui Guan, Jeffrey S. Hall, Xiaojian Zhang, Robert J. Dusek, Alicia K. Olivier, Liyuan Liu, Lei Li, Scott Krauss, Angea Danner, Tao Li, Wiriya Rutvisuttinunt, Xiaoxu Lin, Gunnar T. Hallgrimsson, Sunna B. Ragnarsdottir, Solvi R. Vignisson, Josh TeSlaa, Sean Nashold, Richard Jarman, Xiu-Feng Wan
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, National Wildlife Health Center

Mortality due to Tyzzer's disease of muskrats in northern Ohio, USA

In 2017, we investigated a mortality event of muskrat (Ondatra zibethicus) in Northwest Ohio, USA, and determined the causes of death to be from Tyzzer's disease due to Clostridium piliforme and Klebsiella pneumoniae septicemia. The gross presentation resembled tularemia, which highlighted the importance of a complete diagnostic investigation.
Authors
Daniel A. Grear, Julia S. Lankton, Sara Zaleski, Mark Witt, Jeffrey M. Lorch
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Biological Threats and Invasive Species Research Program, National Wildlife Health Center

Report of the technical expert workshop: Developing recommendations for field response, captive management, and rehabilitation of sea turtles with fibropapillomatosis

Fibropapillomatosis (FP) is a disease of sea turtles that primarily manifests as tumors of the skin. Strandings of green turtles with this disease have dramatically increased in the Southeast U.S. over the last decade, necessitating a review of various practices related to the capture, handling, and treatment of afflicted turtles. NOAA and USFWS hosted a workshop in St. Petersburg, Florida on Sept
Authors
Brian Stacy, Allen M. Foley, Thierry M. Work, Anne Lauritsen, Barbara Schroeder, Stacy A. Hargrove, Jennifer L. Keene
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, National Wildlife Health Center

Detection of Bisgaard taxon 40 in Rhinoceros Auklets (Cerorhinca monocerata) with pneumonia and septicemia from a mortality event in Washington, USA

We isolated Bisgaard taxon 40 from Rhinoceros Auklets (Cerorhinca monocerata) with pneumonia and septicemia from Washington, US, found dead in 2016. Previously isolated only from the respiratory tract of a gull (Laridae), little is known about its pathogenic potential and whether it acts as a primary or opportunistic pathogen.
Authors
Susan Knowles, Barbara Bodenstein, Brenda M. Berlowski-Zier, Susan M Thomas, Scott F Pearson, Jeffrey M. Lorch
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, National Wildlife Health Center

Element concentrations in tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) from the U.S. and Binational Great Lakes’ areas of concern

Selected elements were targeted in state Remedial Action Plans as one group of chemicals affecting the Beneficial Use Impairments of Great Lakes Areas of Concern (AOC). Livers of nestling tree swallows, Tachycineta bicolor, were harvested from 76 sites in the Great Lakes which included multiple sites at 27 AOCs and 12 reference sites from 2010 to 2015 and analyzed for 21 elements. Mercury conce
Authors
Thomas W. Custer, Christine M. Custer, Paul Dummer, Diana R. Goldberg, J. Christian Franson
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Contaminant Biology, National Wildlife Health Center, Upper Midwest Environmental Sciences Center

Predicting the initial spread of novel Asian origin influenza A viruses in the continental USA by wild waterfowl

Using data on waterfowl band recoveries, we identified spatially explicit hotspots of concentrated waterfowl movement to predict occurrence and spatial spread of a novel influenza A virus (clade 2.3.4.4) introduced from Asia by waterfowl from an initial outbreak in North America in November 2014. In response to the outbreak, the hotspots of waterfowl movement were used to help guide sampling for c
Authors
Alan B. Franklin, Sarah N. Bevins, Jeremy W. Ellis, Ryan S. Miller, Susan A. Shriner, J. Jeffrey Root, Daniel P. Walsh, Thomas J. DeLiberto
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, National Wildlife Health Center

Field diagnostics and seasonality of Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola in wild snake populations

Snake fungal disease (SFD) is an emerging disease caused by the fungal pathogen, Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola. Clinical signs of SFD include dermal lesions, including regional and local edema, crusts, and ulcers. Snake fungal disease is widespread in the Eastern United States, yet there are limited data on how clinical signs of SFD compare with laboratory diagnostics. We compared two sampling methods
Authors
Jennifer M. McKenzie, Steven J. Price, J. Leo Fleckenstein, Andrea N. Drayer, Grant M. Connette, Elizabeth A. Bohuski, Jeffrey M. Lorch
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, National Wildlife Health Center

Response to “Prepublication communication of research results”: The need for a coordinated wildlife disease surveillance laboratory network

In “Prepublication Communication of Research Results”, Adams et al. (2018) outline the importance of timeliness in providing scientific results with consequential implications for wildlife management to responsible government agencies. The authors discuss various impediments to sharing of scientific results and provide well-reasoned arguments why scientists should not fear that sharing these resul
Authors
Jonathan M. Sleeman, David S. Blehert, Katherine L. D. Richgels, C. LeAnn White
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, National Wildlife Health Center

Pathology and case definition of Severe Perkinsea Infections of frogs

Severe Perkinsea infection (SPI) is an emerging disease of frogs responsible for mass mortalities of tadpoles across the United States. It is caused by protozoa belonging to the phylum Perkinsozoa that form a distinct group referred to as the Pathogenic Perkinsea Clade of frogs. In this work, we provide detailed description of gross and histologic lesions from 178 naturally infected tadpoles, incl
Authors
Marcos Isidoro Ayza, Daniel A. Grear, Aurélie Chambouvet
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, National Wildlife Health Center

Lethal infection of wild raptors with highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N8 and H5N2 viruses in the USA, 2014–15

An outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) led to heavy losses of poultry in commercial farms in North America in 2014–15. Enhanced surveillance by virologists and pathologists at the US Geological Survey National Wildlife Health Center and its partners resulted in the identification of lethal infections with clade 2.3.4.4 subgroup icA2 H5N8 and novel reassortant H5N2 viruses in diver
Authors
Susan Knowles, Valerie I. Shearn-Bochsler, Hon S. Ip
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, National Wildlife Health Center

Proposed attributes of national wildlife health programmes

Wildlife health is important for conservation, healthy ecosystems, sustainable development, and biosecurity. It presents unique challenges for national programme governance and delivery because wildlife health crosses not only jurisdictional responsibilities and authorities but also inherently spans multiple sectors of expertise. The World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) encourages its Member
Authors
Craig Stephen, Jonathan M. Sleeman, Natalie T. Nguyen, P. Zimmer, J. P. Duff, D. Gavier-Widen, T. Grillo, H. Lee, J. Rijks, Marie-Pierre Ryser-Degiorgis, T. Tana, M. Uhart
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, National Wildlife Health Center

The expectations and challenges of wildlife disease research in the era of genomics: Forecasting with a horizon scan-like exercise

The outbreak and transmission of disease-causing pathogens are contributing to the unprecedented rate of biodiversity decline. Recent advances in genomics have coalesced into powerful tools to monitor, detect, and reconstruct the role of pathogens impacting wildlife populations. Wildlife researchers are thus uniquely positioned to merge ecological and evolutionary studies with genomic technologies
Authors
Robert R. Fitak, Jennifer D. Antonides, Eric J. Baitchman, Elisa Bonaccorso, Josephine Braun, Steven Kubiski, Elliott Chiu, Anna C. Fagre, Roderick B. Gagne, Justin S. Lee, Jennifer L. Malmberg, Mark D. Stenglein, Robert J. Dusek, David Forgacs, Nicholas M. Fountain-Jones, Marie L. J. Gilbertson, Katherine E. L. Worsley-Tonks, W. Chris Funk, Daryl R. Trumbo, Bruno M. Ghersi, Wray Grimaldi, Sara E. Heisel, Claire M. Jardine, Pauline L. Kamath, Dibesh Karmacharya, Christopher P. Kozakiewicz, Simona Kraberger, Dagan A. Loisel, Cait McDonald, Steven Miller, Devon O’Rourke, Caitlin N. Ott-Conn, Mónica Páez-Vacas, Alison J. Peel, Wendy C. Turner, Meredith C. VanAcker, Sue VandeWoude, Jill Pecon-Slattery
By
Ecosystems Mission Area, Biological Threats and Invasive Species Research Program, National Wildlife Health Center