Cast from the Past? Microbial Diversity of a Neolithic Stone Circle.

We studied the microbial diversity colonizing limestone rock pools at a Neolithic Monument (Arbor Low, Derbyshire, England). Five pools were analyzed: four located at the megaliths of the stone circle and one pool placed at the megalith at the Gib Hill burial mound 300 m distant. Samples were taken from rock pool walls and sediments, and investigated through molecular metabarcoding.

West Nile Virus Seroprevalence in Wild Birds and Equines in Madrid Province, Spain.

West Nile virus (WNV) is a re-emerging flavivirus, primarily circulating among avian hosts and mosquito vectors, causing periodic outbreaks in humans and horses, often leading to neuroinvasive disease and mortality. Spain has reported several outbreaks, most notably in 2020 with seventy-seven human cases and eight fatalities. WNV has been serologically detected in horses in the Community of Madrid, but to our knowledge, it has never been reported from wild birds in this region.

Spatio-temporal dynamics and aetiology of proliferative leg skin lesions in wild British finches.

Proliferative leg skin lesions have been described in wild finches in Europe although there have been no large-scale studies of their aetiology or epizootiology to date. Firstly, disease surveillance, utilising public reporting of observations of live wild finches was conducted in Great Britain (GB) and showed proliferative leg skin lesions in chaffinches (Fringilla coelebs) to be widespread. Seasonal variation was observed, with a peak during the winter months.

Molecular identification of papillomavirus in ducks.

Papillomaviruses infect many vertebrates, including birds. Persistent infections by some strains can cause malignant proliferation of cells (i.e.

Natural history of avian papillomaviruses.

Papillomaviruses (Family: Papillomaviridae) are small non-enveloped viruses that cause skin and mucosa infections in diverse vertebrates. The vast majority have been detected in mammals. However, the number of papillomaviruses described in birds is growing, especially because of metagenomic studies.

Prevalence and Genetic Diversity of Avipoxvirus in House Sparrows in Spain.

Avipoxvirus (APV) is a fairly common virus affecting birds that causes morbidity and mortality in wild and captive birds. We studied the prevalence of pox-like lesions and genetic diversity of APV in house sparrows (Passer domesticus) in natural, agricultural and urban areas in southern Spain in 2013 and 2014 and in central Spain for 8 months (2012-2013). Overall, 3.

A Century of Shope Papillomavirus in Museum Rabbit Specimens.

Sylvilagus floridanus Papillomavirus (SfPV) causes growth of large horn-like tumors on rabbits. SfPV was described in cottontail rabbits (probably Sylvilagus floridanus) from Kansas and Iowa by Richard Shope in 1933, and detected in S. audubonii in 2011.

Polymerase chain reaction detection of avipox and avian papillomavirus in naturally infected wild birds: comparisons of blood, swab and tissue samples.

Avian poxvirus (avipox) is widely reported from avian species, causing cutaneous or mucosal lesions. Mortality rates of up to 100% are recorded in some hosts. Three major avipox clades are recognized.

Avian Influenza infections in nonmigrant land birds in Andean Peru.

As part of ongoing surveillance for avian influenza viruses (AIV) in Peruvian birds, in June 2008, we sampled 600 land birds of 177 species, using real-time reverse-transcription PCR. We addressed the assumption that AIV prevalence is low or nil among land birds, a hypodiesis that was not supported by the results-rather, we found AIV infections at relatively high prevalences in birds of the orders Apodiformes (hummingbirds) and Passeriformes (songbirds). Surveillance programs for monitoring spread and identification of AIV should thus not focus solely on water birds.

Continent-wide association of H5N1 outbreaks in wild and domestic birds in Europe.

The highly pathogenic avian influenza strain H5N1 was first detected in Europe in 2005, and has since been documented continent-wide in wild birds and poultry. However, the relative roles of each host group in transmission remain contentious. Using recently developed tools for analysis of ecological niches and geographic distributions of species, we compared ecological niche requirements for H5N1 between paired host groups (poultry versus wild birds, Anseriformes versus Falconiformes, swans versus non-swan Anseriformes).

Ecological niche modeling of Francisella tularensis subspecies and clades in the United States.

Two subspecies of Francisella tularensis are recognized: F. tularensis subsp. tularensis (type A) and F.

Ecology and geography of avian influenza (HPAI H5N1) transmission in the Middle East and northeastern Africa.

Background: The emerging highly pathogenic avian influenza strain H5N1 ("HPAI-H5N1") has spread broadly in the past decade, and is now the focus of considerable concern. We tested the hypothesis that spatial distributions of HPAI-H5N1 cases are related consistently and predictably to coarse-scale environmental features in the Middle East and northeastern Africa.We used ecological niche models to relate virus occurrences to 8 km resolution digital data layers summarizing parameters of monthly surface reflectance and landform.

Easy visualization of the protist Oxyrrhis marina grazing on a live fluorescently labelled heterotrophic nanoflagellate.

Planktonic heterotrophic flagellates are ubiquitous eukaryotic microorganisms that play a crucial role in carbon and nutrient fluxes through pelagic food webs. Here we illustrate for the first time a grazing model of planktonic dinoflagellate, Oxyrrhis marina, on the heterotrophic nanoflagellate Goniomonas amphinema, using the DNA-binding fluorescent dye Hoechst 33342. A solution of 1 microg/mL of the fluorochrome allowed viability of the prey for at least 48 hours, provided low fluorescence quenching, and labelled the flagellate without masking the cytoplasm.

Predictable ecology and geography of avian influenza (H5N1) transmission in Nigeria and West Africa.

The emerging virus strain termed highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza (HP-H5N1) has spread widely in the past decade and is now the focus of considerable concern in several sectors. We tested the hypothesis that spatial distributions of veterinary and human HP-H5N1 cases are related to coarse-scale environmental features in West Africa. We used ecological niche models to associate Nigerian HP-H5N1 occurrences with 1 km resolution digital data layers summarizing parameters of surface reflectance and landform.