Tracking seabird migration in the tropical Indian Ocean reveals basin-scale conservation need.

Understanding marine predator distributions is an essential component of arresting their catastrophic declines. In temperate, polar, and upwelling seas, predictable oceanographic features can aggregate migratory predators, which benefit from site-based protection. In more oligotrophic tropical waters, however, it is unclear whether environmental conditions create similar multi-species hotspots.

Migratory patterns of two major influenza virus host species on tropical islands.

Animal migration is a major driver of infectious agent dispersal. Duck and seabird migrations, for instance, play a key role in the spatial transmission dynamics and gene flow of avian influenza viruses (AIV), worldwide. On tropical islands, brown and lesser noddies ( and ) may be important AIV hosts, but the lack of knowledge on their migratory behaviour limits our understanding of virus circulation in island networks.

Eradication of common mynas Acridotheres tristis from Denis Island, Seychelles.

Background: In Seychelles, the common myna has been shown to have a negative impact on endangered endemic birds on Denis Island, interfering with breeding attempts and attacking adult endemic birds at their nests. This stimulated an attempt to eradicate the island's mynas.

Results: The eradication was undertaken in three phases, overall killing 1186 mynas and lasting 5 years.

Influenza A virus on oceanic islands: host and viral diversity in seabirds in the Western Indian Ocean.

Ducks and seabirds are natural hosts for influenza A viruses (IAV). On oceanic islands, the ecology of IAV could be affected by the relative diversity, abundance and density of seabirds and ducks. Seabirds are the most abundant and widespread avifauna in the Western Indian Ocean and, in this region, oceanic islands represent major breeding sites for a large diversity of potential IAV host species.

Persistence of highly pathogenic avian influenza viruses in natural ecosystems.

Understanding of ecologic factors favoring emergence and maintenance of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) viruses is limited. Although low pathogenic avian influenza viruses persist and evolve in wild populations, HPAI viruses evolve in domestic birds and cause economically serious epizootics that only occasionally infect wild populations. We propose that evolutionary ecology considerations can explain this apparent paradox.

Role of wild birds in the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza virus H5N1 and implications for global surveillance.

This paper reviews outbreaks of Asian-lineage highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIV) H5N1 in wild birds since June 2006, surveillance strategies, and research on virus epidemiology in wild birds to summarize advances in understanding the role of wild birds in the spread of HPAIV H5N1 and the risk that infected wild birds pose for the poultry industry and for public health. Surveillance of apparently healthy wild birds ("active" surveillance) has not provided early warning of likely infection for the poultry industry, whereas searches for and reports of dead birds ("passive" surveillance) have provided evidence of environmental presence of the virus, but not necessarily its source. Most outbreaks in wild birds have occurred during periods when they are experiencing environmental, physiologic, and possibly psychological stress, including adverse winter weather and molt, but not, apparently, long-distance migration.

The role of wild birds in the spread of HPAI H5N1.

There is much debate about the relative roles of poultry movements and wild bird movements in the spread of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1. This article looks at the problem from an ornithologic perspective. Outbreaks in wild birds are examined in relation to three scenarios of possible wild bird involvement in virus transmission.

Asymptomatic infection with highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 in wild birds: how sound is the evidence?

Background: Widespread deaths of wild birds from which highly pathogenic avian influenza virus H5N1 has been isolated suggest that the virus continues to be lethal to them. However, asymptomatic carriage by some wild birds could allow birds to spread the virus on migration. Confirmation of such carriage is therefore important for the design of mitigation measures for the disease in poultry.