Bloodfed Aedes albopictus were collected during 1989-91 by vacuum aspirator from rural and urban study sites in Missouri, Florida, Indiana, Illinois, and Louisiana. Blood hosts identified by ELISA and precipitin tests were rabbit (n = 91), Rattus sp. (n = 69), dog (n = 14), unidentified mammal (n = 14), cow (n = 13), human (n = 10), deer (n = 10), sciurid (n = 7), turtle (n = 5), murid other th...

BACKGROUND The microbiome provides multiple benefits to animal hosts that can profoundly impact health and behavior. Microbiomes are well-characterized in humans and other animals in controlled settings, yet assessments of wild bird microbial communities remain vastly understudied. This is particularly true for pelagic seabirds with unique life histories that differ from terrestrial bird specie...

West Nile virus (WNV) has caused repeated large-scale human epidemics in North America since it was first detected in 1999 and is now the dominant vector-borne disease in this continent. Understanding the factors that determine the intensity of the spillover of this zoonotic pathogen from birds to humans (via mosquitoes) is a prerequisite for predicting and preventing human epidemics. We integr...

Populations of North American waterbirds, particularly lesser scaup, have been declining due to habitat disturbance, changing food resources, contaminants, bad water quality, and competition. However, epizootic diseases, including parasitism, may also play an important role in further decline. Trematode-associated mortality of migrating waterbirds, mainly American coot and lesser scaup, has bee...

Information about helminths of Molothrus bonariensis (Gmelin, 1789) (Passeriformes: Icteridae) are scarce; in this sense the objective of this paper was to contribute to its knowledge. Five hosts of southern Brazil were examined and the helminths Prosthogonimus ovatus, Tanaisia valida (Digenea), Diplotriaena bargusinica and Synhimantus (Dispharynx) nasuta (Nematoda) were identified. The species...

Ecotourists have high potentials to spread ecological awareness, while they maintain quality tourism and learn how to respect and preserve the natural environment. Knowledge is an important prerequisite to predict future attitudes and connect tourists with nature. Ecotourism focuses on areas with rare flora and fauna. Lesvos Island hosts rare species which attract numbers of bird watchers yearl...

Ixodes affinis, which is similar morphologically to Ixodes scapularis, is widely distributed in North Carolina. Collections have documented this species in 32 of 41 coastal plain counties, but no piedmont or mountain counties. This coastal plain distribution is similar to its distribution in Georgia and South Carolina, where it is considered an enzootic vector of Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stri...

Parasitological examination of three passerine bird species: the Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio, Eurasian Golden Oriole Oriolus oriolus and Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava, revealed the presence of the nematodes Acuaria subula, Diplotriaena ozouxi, Viguiera euryoptera and Microtetrameres inermis. All the birds were obtained in the spring (April-May); the nematodes found were mature, which ind...

The ability to attach to host cells is one of the main determinants of the host range of influenza A viruses. By using virus histochemistry, we investigate the pattern of virus attachment of both a human and an avian influenza virus in colon and trachea sections from 12 wild bird species. We show that significant variations exist, even between closely related avian species, which suggests that ...

To understand the role of domestic birds in the 2009 H1N1 influenza A outbreak, a phylogenetic analysis of hemagglutinin, neuraminidase and matrix protein genes from human, avian and swine H1N1 viruses was carried out. Analysis of the H1 sequences revealed that the virus evolved most likely from American swine as well as intermixing between Asian swine and American domestic bird H1N1 viruses. N...