BACKGROUND In Bangladesh, nomadic duck flocks are groups of domestic ducks reared for egg production that are moved to access feeding sites beyond their owners' village boundaries and are housed overnight in portable enclosures in scavenging areas. The objectives of this study were to measure the prevalence of influenza A virus RNA and H5-specific antibodies in nomadic ducks and to characterize...

Intestinal mucin 2 (MUC2), a major gel-forming mucin, represents a primary barrier component of mucus layers and a target site for secretory IgA. Polymeric Ig receptor (pIgR) expressed on the basolateral surface of epithelium is used to transport polymeric IgA from the lamina propria into luminal mucins to establish the first lines of intestinal defense. To determine the spatio-temporal express...

Domestic ducks are natural reservoirs of avian influenza viruses and serve as reassortant hosts for new virus subtypes. We isolated 2 novel influenza A(H5N8) viruses from domestic ducks in eastern China, sequenced their genomes, and tested their pathogenicity in chickens and mice. Circulation of these viruses may pose health risks for humans.

Sera from 173 turkeys, 108 chickens, and 48 ducks from Giza, Egypt, were tested for the presence of anti-Toxoplasma gondii antibodies by means of the modified agglutination test using mercaptoethanol and formalin-fixed tachyzoites. The prevalence of anti-T. gondii antibodies (>1:25) among turkeys, chickens, and ducks was 59.5%, 47.2%, and 50%, respectively.

We compared density and morphology of wild mussels Mytilus trossulus growing naturally on shellfish farming structures to that of mussels from nearby intertidal areas, and considered the relevance to molluscivorous sea ducks. Mussel density on aquaculture structures greatly exceeded that of intertidal areas and farm mussels were larger, had lower shell mass, and had weaker byssal attachments. D...

Western Tennessee is an important region for waterfowl during non-breeding periods, supporting >40% of the Mississippi Flyway population of American black ducks (Anas rubripes). Understanding habitat selection and activities of waterfowl during the non-breeding period is important for directed habitat management on national wildlife refuges and in other wetlands important in meeting regional wa...

The Western Gulf Coast population of the mottled duck (Anas fulvigula) is dependent on the Gulf coastal marsh to complete its entire life cycle. Band recovery data can be used to monitor mottled duck populations by estimating annual survival, indexing harvest rate, and assessing movements. Band returns from hunting seasons 1997–2013 were used to evaluate factors influencing annual survival, rec...

Waterfowl and shorebirds harbor and shed all hemagglutinin and neuraminidase subtypes of influenza A viruses and interact in nature with a broad range of other avian and mammalian species to which they might transmit such viruses. Estimating the efficiency and importance of such cross-species transmission using epidemiological approaches is difficult. We therefore addressed this question by stu...

BACKGROUND Bali Province was affected by avian influenza H5N1 outbreaks in birds in October 2003. Despite ongoing circulation of the virus, no human infection had been identified by December 2005. OBJECTIVES To assess behavioral patterns associated with poultry rearing in Bali, and to identify potential risk factors for H5N1 infection in humans and in household chickens, ducks and pigs. MET...