Life Sciences Commons^™

Core Commitments For Field Trials Of Gene Drive Organisms, Kanya C. Long, Luke Alphey, George J. Annas, Cinnamon S. Bloss, Karl J. Campbell, Jackson Champer, Chun-Hong Chen, Amit Choudhary, George M. Church, James P. Collins, Kimberly L. Cooper, Jason A. Delborne, Owain R. Edwards, Claudia I. Emerson, Kevin Esvelt, Sam Weiss Evans, Robert M. Friedman, Valentino M. Gantz, Fred Gould, Sarah Hartley, Elizabeth Heitman, Janet Hemingway, Hirotaka Kanuka, Jennifer Kuzma, James V. Lavery, Yoosook Lee, Marce Lorenzen, Jeantine E. Lunshof, John M. Marshall, Philipp W. Messer, Craig Montell, Kenneth A. Oye, Megan J. Palmer, Philippos Aris Papathanos, Prasad N. Paradkar, Antoinette J. Piaggio, Jason L. Rasgon, Gordana Rašić, Larisa Rudenko, J. Royden Saah, Maxwell J. Scott, Jolene T. Sutton, Adam E, Vorsino, Omar S. Akbari

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

We must ensure that trials are scientifically, politically, and socially robust, publicly accountable, and widely transparent.

Gene drive organisms (GDOs), whose genomes have been genetically engineered to spread a desired allele through a population, have the potential to transform the way societies address a wide range of daunting public health and environmental challenges. The development, testing, and release of GDOs, however, are complex and often controversial. A key challenge is to clarify the appropriate roles of developers and others actively engaged in work with GDOs in decision-making processes, and, in particular, how to establish partnerships with relevant authorities and other …

Correction: Moxley, R.A., Et Al. Intimate Attachment Of Escherichia Coli O157:H7 To Urinary Bladder Epithelium In The Gnotobiotic Piglet Model. Microorganisms 2020, 8, 263, Rodney A. Moxley, Tom W. Bargar, Stephen D. Kachman, Diane R. Baker, David Francis

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

The authors wish to make the following corrections to this paper [1]: On page 2, the sentence that reads, “Hence, EHEC is a rare but established cause of HUS in children and adults.” should read, “Hence, EHEC is a rare but established cause of UTI-associated HUS in children and adults.” On page 4, the sentence that reads, “As noted previously, 14 of 126 (13.3%) piglets orally inoculated with EHEC O157:H7 strains developed mild to moderate purulent cystitis within 8 d PI [25] (Table 1).” should read, “As noted previously, 14 of 105 (13.3%) piglets orally inoculated with EHEC O157:H7 strains …

Impact Of Endangered Animal Protection Rights, Policies, And Practices On Zoonotic Disease Spread, Daniella Fedak-Lengel

Honors Projects

Building on field research in Costa Rica and Belize, this honors project analyzes environmental and endangered animal protection policies, rights, and practices in Central America and the Caribbean, and assesses the impact of veterinary science and biological research and practice, particularly conservation biology, on animal welfare concerns. Informed by the recent surge in awareness regarding zoonoses and zoonotic disease transmission, prevention and control, resulting from the current global pandemic of SARS-CoV-2, the project assesses the need for new and innovative types of collaboration, particularly involving conservation biologists, environmental scientists, public health experts, law and policy makers, and global trade and …

Prevalence Of Rats And Rodent Borne Pathogens Across Post-Katrina New Orleans, Bruno Marco Ghersi

Doctoral Dissertations

Disasters are happening at an increasingly higher rate and intensity a trend that is expected to continue as more humans migrate to coastal urban areas. Disasters, and as importantly, disaster recovery can affect how native and pest populations will recover. My aim was to improve understanding of disease risk by evaluating the socioecological conditions that have shaped commensal rat recovery and distribution, as well as the pathogens they carry, across New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina. I first estimated relative abundance and distribution of commensal rats from rodent trapping conducted between mid-2014 and early-2017 across 96 sites in 10 areas of …

The Surveillance Of Gastrointestinal Parasitic Nematodes Of Northwest Arkansas Dairy Cattle Using Traditional And Genetic Parasitological Identification Procedures, Eva M. Wray

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Traditional and genetic parasitological identification procedures were compared using naturaland artificial nematode parasite infections in Holstein steer calves. The traditional parasitological procedures measured fecal egg counts, coprocultures with subsequent larval collection and adult nematodes collected at necropsy. The genetic identification procedures measured ITS-2 sequences extracted from different stages of nematode development: raw feces, concentrated nematode eggs, third stage larvae and adults. The primary nematodes observed were Cooperia oncophora, Cooperia punctata and Ostertagia ostertagi. The traditional techniques were not significantly different from one another, while the genetic sequencing showed variation amongst the different procedures. The raw feces sequences showed the most …

Effect Of Feed Additives And Toxic Elements On Swine Growth Performance, Nutrient Digestibility, Immune Function And Reproductive Performance, Richard A. Mudarra Hernández

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

To evaluate the effects of peptide in combination of zinc oxide (Zno) or acidifiers (Exp 1), and gossypol (G) from cottonseed meal (CSM) ( Exp 2&3) on growth performance, complete blood cell counts (Exp 1, 2&3), nutrient digestibility (Exp 1), plasma gossypol (Exp 2&3) and semen quality (Exp 3), weaned pigs (Exp 1), growing gilts (Exp 2) and growing boars (Exp 3) were randomly allotted to dietary treatments. Treatments for Exp 1 during phase 1&2 were: (1) Positive Control (PC), formulated to meet NRC (2012) nutrient requirements; (2) Negative control (NC), fish meal was reduced to achieve -0.13% SID lysine; …

Whole Genome Sequencing Identified A 16 Kilobase Deletion On Eca13 Associated With Distichiasis In Friesian Horses, E. A. Hisey, H. Hermans, Z. T. Lounsberry, F. Avila, R. A. Grahn, K. E. Knickelbein, S. A. Duward-Akhurst, M. E. Mccue, Theodore S. Kalbfleisch, M. E. Lassaline, W. Back, R. R. Bellone

Veterinary Science Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Distichiasis, an ocular disorder in which aberrant cilia (eyelashes) grow from the opening of the Meibomian glands of the eyelid, has been reported in Friesian horses. These misplaced cilia can cause discomfort, chronic keratitis, and corneal ulceration, potentially impacting vision due to corneal fibrosis, or, if secondary infection occurs, may lead to loss of the eye. Friesian horses represent the vast majority of reported cases of equine distichiasis, and as the breed is known to be affected with inherited monogenic disorders, this condition was hypothesized to be a simply inherited Mendelian trait.

RESULTS: A genome wide association study (GWAS) …

Eficacia Comparada De Tres Fármacos Acaricidas Utilizados En El Tratamiento De Otocariasis Por Otodectes Cynotis En Gatos Domésticos De Puerto Montt, Región De Los Lagos, Chile, Leandro Castro García, Manuel Saldivia Paredes

Revista de Medicina Veterinaria

Otodectes cynotis es uno de los ácaros responsables de causar dermatosis parasitaria en el pabellón auricular en animales de compañía, lo que les produce prurito intenso e incluso complicaciones óticas por falta del tratamiento adecuado. Su prevalencia en felinos domésticos puede llegar al 37 y el 85 % de los casos de otitis externa. Son variados los productos que pueden utilizarse para el tratamiento de este ácaro, aunque algunos no declaran en su etiquetado su uso en determinadas especies. Por otra parte, los datos disponibles sobre la eficacia comparada de los diversos fármacos utilizados son escasos. Los fármacos más utilizados …

Vómito, Sialorrea Y Regurgitación Como Signos Clínicos De Convulsiones Epilépticas Focales Autonómicas En Tres Perros, Silvia Feijoo, María Cecilia Ricart, Laura Marina, María Carina Passeri, Adriana Patricia Suraniti

Revista de Medicina Veterinaria

Las convulsiones epilépticas focales se originan en una localización focal del cerebro con descargas eléctricas anormales que pueden suceder por distintas causas, y pueden ocurrir en un bajo porcentaje de animales; son signos diferentes a la típica mioclonía tónico-clónica. El objetivo del presente trabajo es exponer casos clínicos de perros que presentaron vómitos, sialorrea y regurgitación como signos clínicos de convulsiones epilépticas focales. Estos perros, además de presentar tales signos digestivos mencionados, no mostraron alteraciones reveladoras en los datos de laboratorio ni en los métodos complementarios de imágenes solicitados. Debido a la escasa respuesta terapéutica y al empeoramiento de la …

Relación Entre La Concentración Sérica De Calcio, Beta-Hidroxibutirato Y Glucosa Y La Ocurrencia De Trastornos Mamarios Y Uterinos Durante La Lactancia Temprana En Ganado Lechero, Gabriel Esnaola, Waldemir Santiago Neto, Félix González

Revista de Medicina Veterinaria

Este estudio tuvo por objetivo relacionar valores séricos de indicadores energéticos (glucosa y beta-hidroxibutirato) y calcio con la ocurrencia de trastornos uterinos y mamarios durante el período de transición en vacas Holstein. Ciento quince vacas Holstein de un rebaño comercial fueron monitoreadas en la semana previa al parto y durante las primeras dos semanas después del parto. La presencia de mastitis subclínica fue monitoreada por 3 semanas postparto mediante la prueba de mastitis California (CMT) y conteo de células somáticas. Las muestras positivas a mastitis subclínica fueron analizadas para identificación bacteriana. La mastitis clínica fue monitoreada durante 6 semanas postparto, …

Eficacia Comparativa De Diferentes Regímenes Quimioterapéuticos En El Tratamiento De La Peste Des Petits Ruminants (Ppr) En Cabras Enanas De África Occidental, Iniobong Chukwuebuka Ugochukwu, Paul Chukwuemeka Animoke, Jacinta Ngozi Omeke, Chukwuma Obiora Okechukwu, Emmanuel Ikenna Ugochukwu

Revista de Medicina Veterinaria

Se determinó la eficacia comparativa de diferentes regímenes quimioterapéuticos en el tratamiento de la infección clínica natural con la Peste de los pequeños rumiantes (PPR) en cabras enanas de África occidental (WAD). Se usaron veinte cabras WAD machos, distribuidos en cinco grupos, de cuatro cabras cada uno. El Grupo 1 fue el grupo de terapia combinada, tratado con Aciclovir, Oxitetraciclina e Ivermectina, El Grupo 2 fue tratado con Aciclovir solamente. El Grupo 3 fue tratado con Ivermectina solamente. El Grupo 4 fue tratado con Oxitetraciclina solamente y el Grupo 5 no recibió tratamiento. Se observaron signos clínicos como secreciones nasales …

Triglicéridos Séricos En Equinos Suplementados Con Vitamina E En El Ejercicio De Larga Duración, Polyana Pulcheira Paixão, Tatiana De Sousa Barbosa, Paula Pulcheira Brasileiro, Marcos Jun Watanabe, Leticia Andreza Yonezawa, Marcus Vinicius Sandoval Paixão

Revista de Medicina Veterinaria

Los triglicéridos son uno de los componentes lipídicos de la sangre y su elevación es un factor de riesgo mayor para las enfermedades cardiovasculares. La práctica de ejercicios es responsable de la disminución de la grasa presente en el organismo, además de equilibrar la cantidad de energía ingerida y utilizada. La vitamina E es un antioxidante liposoluble tecidual que sostiene la cadena de peroxidación lipídica, lo que previene su oxidación, y de este modo puede actuar en la reducción de la trigliceridemia. Este estudio tuvo como objetivo evaluar las concentraciones plasmáticas de triglicéridos de equinos después de ser sometidos al …

Linking Mosquito Surveillance To Dengue Fever Through Bayesian Mechanistic Modeling, Clinton B. Leach, Jennifer A. Hoeting, Kim M. Pepin, Alvaro E. Eiras, Mevin B. Hooten, Colleen T. Webb

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Our ability to effectively prevent the transmission of the dengue virus through targeted control of its vector, Aedes aegypti, depends critically on our understanding of the link between mosquito abundance and human disease risk. Mosquito and clinical surveillance data are widely collected, but linking them requires a modeling framework that accounts for the complex non-linear mechanisms involved in transmission. Most critical are the bottleneck in transmission imposed by mosquito lifespan relative to the virus’ extrinsic incubation period, and the dynamics of human immunity. We developed a differential equation model of dengue transmission and embedded it in a Bayesian hierarchical …

Spotted Owls And Forest Fire: Comment, Gavin M. Jones, R. J. Gutiérrez, William M. Block, Peter C. Carlson, Emily J. Comfort, Samuel A. Cushman, Raymond J. Davis, Stephanie A. Eyes, Alan B. Franklin, Joseph L. Ganey, Shaula Hedwall, John J. Keane, Rodd Kelsey, Damon B, Lesmeister, Malcolm P. North, Susan L. Roberts, Jeremy T. Rockweit, Jamie S. Sanderlin, Sarah C. Sawyer, Ben Solvesky, Douglas J. Tempel, Ho Yi Wan, A. Leroy Westerling, Gary C. White, M. Zachariah Peery

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Western North American forest ecosystems are experiencing rapid changes in disturbance regimes because of climate change and land use legacies (Littell et al. 2018). In many of these forests, the accumulation of surface and ladder fuels from a century of fire suppression, coupled with a warming and drying climate, has led to increases in the number of large fires (Westerling 2016) and the proportion of areas burning at higher severity (Safford and Stevens 2017, Singleton et al. 2018). While the annual area burned by fire is still below historical levels (Taylor et al. 2016), some forest types in the west …

Endometritis Supurativa En Una Tití Gris (Saguinus Leucopus) En Cautiverio: Reporte De Caso, Laura Cristina Sánchez-Sáenz, Claudia Brieva-Rico, Claudia Consuelo Díaz-Quiroga

Revista de Medicina Veterinaria

La endometritis es la inflamación del revestimiento interno del útero producida por distintos agentes infecciosos. Puede presentarse de forma clínica o subclínica, y tener curso agudo o crónico. Este documento describe el caso de una hembra de tití gris (Saguinus leucopus) en proceso de rehabilitación en la Unidad de Rescate y Rehabilitación de Animales Silvestres (URRAS), que manifestó enfermedad uterina, y cuyos hallazgos fueron compatibles con endometritis supurativa. No se conocen otros reportes de la patología en calitrícidos. Por tal motivo, se propone adelantar investigaciones que determinen los factores de riesgo en la presentación de estas enfermedades reproductivas, y para …

Efecto Del Componente Arbóreo Sobre La Dinámica De Crecimiento Y Calidad Nutricional De Una Pradera Mixta En Trópico Alto, Alexander Navas Panadero, Laura Fernanda Aragón Henao, Jorge Fernando Triana Valenzuela

Revista de Medicina Veterinaria

Los sistemas ganaderos se basan en el monocultivo de gramíneas. El pastoreo comúnmente no tiene en cuenta la fisiología de las especies, lo que afecta la persistencia y calidad del forraje. Los sistemas silvopastoriles favorecen la producción y calidad del forraje. Por eso es importante conocer la dinámica de crecimiento de la pastura para determinar el momento óptimo de pastoreo. Con base en esto, el objetivo de esta investigación fue evaluar el efecto de Acacia melanoxilum sobre la producción y calidad nutricional de una pradera mixta en trópico alto. La investigación se desarrolló en el Centro de Investigación y Capacitación …

Loci Associated With Antibody Response In Feral Swine (Sus Scrofa) Infected With Brucella Suis, Courtney F. Pierce, Vienna R. Brown, Steven C. Olsen, Paola Boggiatto, Kerri Pedersen, Ryan S. Miller, Scott E. Speidel, Timothy J. Smyser

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Feral swine (Sus scrofa) are a destructive invasive species widespread throughout the United States that disrupt ecosystems, damage crops, and carry pathogens of concern for the health of domestic stock and humans including Brucella suis—the causative organism for swine brucellosis. In domestic swine, brucellosis results in reproductive failure due to abortions and infertility. Contact with infected feral swine poses spillover risks to domestic pigs as well as humans, companion animals, wildlife, and other livestock. Genetic factors influence the outcome of infectious diseases; therefore, genome wide association studies (GWAS) of differential immune responses among feral swine can provide …

A Review Of Avian Influenza A Virus Associations In Synanthropic Birds, Susan A. Shriner, J. Jeffrey Root

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Avian influenza A viruses (IAV) have received significant attention due to the threat they pose to human, livestock, and wildlife health. In this review, we focus on what is known about IAV dynamics in less common avian species that may play a role in trafficking IAVs to poultry operations. Specifically, we focus on synanthropic bird species. Synanthropic species, otherwise known as peridomestic, are species that are ecologically associated with humans and anthropogenically modified landscapes, such as agricultural and urban areas. Aquatic birds such as waterfowl and shorebirds are the species most commonly associated with avian IAVs, and are generally considered …

Field Evaluation Of Recombinant Antigen Elisa In Detecting Zoonotic Schistosome Infection Among Water Buffaloes In Endemic Municipalities In The Philippines, Jose Ma. M. Angeles, Yasuyuki Goto, Masahi Kirinoki, Elena A. Villacorte, Kharleezelle J. Moendeg, Pilarita T. Rivera, Yuichi Chigusa, Shin-Ichiro Kawazu

Biology Faculty Publications

In this study, we investigated the use of recombinant antigens thioredoxin peroxidase-1 (rSjTPx-1) and tandem repeat rSj1TR in evaluating the antibody positivity rates of Schistosoma japonicum infection among water buffaloes from four endemic areas in the Philippines, two municipalities with high endemicity (Calatrava, Negros Occidental and Catarman, Northern Samar) and two municipalities nearing elimination with no cases of human schistosomiasis (Talibon and Trinidad, Bohol). These recombinant antigen ELISA assays were compared with other diagnostic tests including SEA-ELISA, FECT, and fecal-based PCR. Results showed that rSj1TR-ELISA has the highest agreement with PCR in all study areas. Furthermore, significant positivity rates among …

Nad Metabolism In Male Reproductive Aging, Mirella L. Meyer-Ficca

Funded Research Records

No abstract provided.

Instability Of Glucocorticoid Metabolites In Coyote Scats: Implications For Field Sampling, Erika T. Stevenson, Eric M. Gese, Lorin A. Neuman-Lee, Susannah S. French

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Studying physiologic stress responses can assist in understanding the welfare of animals. One method of measuring the physiologic stress response is evaluating concentrations of glucocorticoid metabolites in feces. Previously, using an adrenocorticotropic hormone challenge, we found fecal glucocorticoid metabolite levels were a reliable indicator of physiologic stress response in coyotes (Canis latrans). We determine whether glucocorticoid metabolite concentrations remain stable when collecting feces over a 2-week period, a timeframe commonly used in scat surveys for wild canids. We collected feces from 6 captive coyotes maintained at the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Wildlife Services, National Wildlife Research Center, Predator …

Tools, Techniques And Teamwork: Transferring New Technologies For Wildlife Management, Conservation And Economic Development, John Eisemann, Gail Keirn

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Did you ever wonder who invented radio telemetry? Or breakaway snares? What about the bird repellent methyl anthranilate or the livestock protection collar? These and many other tools used in wildlife damage management resulted from creative thinking by biologists, technicians, researchers and managers working to solve complex wildlife issues. Over the past 90 years, these “aha moments” within the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services program have ranged from developing novel scare devices, traps and vaccines to exploiting an animal’s visual capabilities to stop unwanted behaviors. Once discovered, these unique ideas may lead to practical, feasible and cost-effective wildlife damage …

Inflamación Mandibular En El Tapir Centroamericano (Tapirus Bairdii): Cambio De Dentición Y Retención De La Corona De Dientes Deciduos Como Potencial Etiología, Gustavo A. González González

Revista de Medicina Veterinaria

El tapir de Baird o centroamericano (Tapirus bairdii), también conocido como danta, habita en bosques tropicales, bosques montañosos bajos, bosques caducifolios, praderas inundadas y humedales. La anatomía interna del tapir es análoga al caballo doméstico, al igual que su fórmula dental. Los molares carecen de cemento y tienen coronas pequeñas o bajas, por lo que son totalmente lofodontes. La inflamación mandibular en los tapires es muy común en las colecciones cautivas y su etiología y prevalencia han sido objeto de discusión, pero no se han definido. Este trabajo sugiere al cambio de dentición y la retención de la corona “tapas” …

Efectos Bioquímicos E Histopatológicos En Ratas Inducidos Por El Veneno De Crotalus Durissus Cumanensis Del Municipio Falcón, Estado Falcón, Venezuela, Mercedes Coromoto Olivera Quintero, Juliana Margot Manzano Graterol

Revista de Medicina Veterinaria

El accidente ofídico representa un importante problema de salud pública en las zonas tropicales y subtropicales del mundo. La cascabel común (Crotalus durissus cumanensis) es la serpiente del género Crotalus más abundante en Venezuela. El objetivo fue determinar los cambios séricos en la alanino aminotransferasa (ALT), aspartato aminotransferasa (AST), lactato deshidrogenasa (LDH) y creatina fosfocinasa (CK) en ratas, inducidos por el veneno de Crotalus durissus cumanensis, así como el establecimiento de los efectos histopatológicos. Se prepararon cinco grupos experimentales con tres ratas cada uno, reservando un grupo control placebo (G1), el cual fue tratado por ruta IP con 100 μL …

Analyses Of The Expression, Immunohistochemical Properties And Serodiagnostic Potential Of Schistosoma Japonicum Peroxiredoxin-4, Minh-Anh Dang-Trinh, Jose Ma. M. Angeles, Kharleezelle J. Moendeg, Adrian Miki C. Macalanda, Thu-Thuy Nguyen, Luna Higuchi, Shotaro Nakagun, Masahi Kirinoki, Yuichi Chigusa, Yasuyuki Goto, Shin-Ichiro Kawazu

Biology Faculty Publications

Background

Schistosoma japonicum, which inhabits the mesenteric vein of the mammalian hosts for about 20 to 30 years, is subjected to the oxidative stresses from the host defense mechanism during their intra-mammalian stages. To counteract this host immune attack, the parasite utilizes their antioxidant system for survival inside the host. Peroxiredoxins (Prxs), thiol-specific antioxidant proteins, play an essential role for protecting the parasite against oxidative stress by reducing hydrogen peroxide to water. Only three types of 2-Cys Prxs have been previously characterized in S. japonicum whereas a fourth Prx has been identified for Schistosoma mansoni as Prx-4. A sequence …

Vampire Bats: Preparing For Range Expansion Into The U.S., Michael J. Bodenchuk, David L. Bergman

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The common vampire bat apparently is expanding its range northwards in Mexico and seems poised to enter the southern United States. Climate models predict suitable habitat in the U.S. in south Texas and parts of southern Arizona. While vampire bats’ northward range expansion is not unexpected, the fact that this species brings a strain of rabies that impacts livestock and people warrants a strategic response. Annual economic damages from bats are estimated between $7M and $9M, largely associated with deaths of livestock from rabies. To prepare for the emerging rabies issue, USDA Wildlife Services programs in Texas and Arizona have …

The P-Glycoprotein Repertoire Of The Equine Parasitic Nematode Parascaris Univalens, Alexander P. Gerhard, Jürgen Krücken, Emanuel Heitlinger, I. Jana I. Janssen, Marta Basiaga, Sławomir Kornaś, Céline Beier, Martin K. Nielsen, Richard E. Davis, Jianbin Wang, Georg Von Samson-Himmelstjerna

Maxwell H. Gluck Equine Research Center Faculty Publications

P-glycoproteins (Pgp) have been proposed as contributors to the widespread macrocyclic lactone (ML) resistance in several nematode species including a major pathogen of foals, Parascaris univalens. Using new and available RNA-seq data, ten different genomic loci encoding Pgps were identified and characterized by transcriptome-guided RT-PCRs and Sanger sequencing. Phylogenetic analysis revealed an ascarid-specific Pgp lineage, Pgp-18, as well as two paralogues of Pgp-11 and Pgp-16. Comparative gene expression analyses in P. univalens and Caenorhabditis elegans show that the intestine is the major site of expression but individual gene expression patterns were not conserved between the two nematodes. In P. …

An Evaluation Of Bird And Bat Mortality At Wind Turbines In The Northeastern United States, Daniel Y. Choi, Thomas W. Wittig, Bryan M. Kluever

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Wind energy offers substantial environmental benefits, but wind facilities can negatively impact wildlife, including birds and bats. Researchers and managers have made major efforts to chronicle bird and bat mortality associated with wind facilities, but few studies have examined the patterns and underlying mechanisms of spatial patterns of fatalities at wind facilities. Understanding the horizontal fall distance between a carcass and the nearest turbine pole is important in designing effective search protocols and estimating total mortality. We explored patterns in taxonomic composition and fall distance of bird and bat carcasses at wind facilities in the Northeastern United States using publicly …

Estimation Of Wildlife Damage From Federal Crop Insurance Data, Sophie Mckee, Stephanie A. Shwiff, Aaron M. Anderson

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

BACKGROUND: Wildlife damage to crops is a persistent and costly problem for many farmers in the USA. Most existing estimates of crop damage have relied on direct assessment methods such as field studies conducted by trained biologists or surveys distributed to farmers. In this paper, we describe a new method of estimating wildlife damage that exploits federal crop insurance data. We focused our study on four crops: corn, soybean, wheat, and cotton, chosen because of their economic importance and their vulnerability to wildlife damage.

RESULTS: We determined crop-raiding hot spots across the USA over the 2015–2019 period and identified the …

Metagenomic, Viral And Host Genetic Analyses Of Congenital Tremor In Pigs, Kylee Sutton

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The Pestivirus genus contains several viral species having a major impact on the livestock species. While there were only four major pestiviral species for a time, recent metagenomic sequencing approaches identified additional species, such as atypical porcine pestivirus (APPV). Congenital tremor was first identified almost a hundred years ago and since still has an impact on swine health. There are two main types of congenital tremor, type A and B, with type A congenital tremor further subcategorized based on causative agent. Until recently, type A-II congenital tremor did not have a known cause. Recent viral sequencing of affected samples, including …