Trace elements in Alaska's ice seals in the 2000s and 2010s.

Ringed (Pusa hispida), bearded (Erignathus barbatus), spotted (Phoca largha), and ribbon (Histriophoca fasciata) seals are ice-associated seals that are important subsistence resources for coastal Alaska Native people. These seals are also mid- to upper trophic level Arctic predators and primary prey of polar bears (Ursus maritimus). We analyzed concentrations of 19 trace elements in seal liver, kidney, muscle, and blubber, including arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury, and vanadium due to their potential toxicity.

A footworm in the door: revising Onchocerca phylogeny with previously unknown cryptic species in wild North American ungulates.

Onchocerca is an important genus of vector-borne filarial nematodes that infect both humans and animals worldwide. Many Onchocerca spp., most of medical and veterinary health relevance, are the focus of a variety of diagnostic and molecular research.

Multilocus Sequence Typing of Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae Detected in Dall's Sheep (Ovis dalli dalli) and Caribou (Rangifer tarandus grantii) in Alaska, USA.

In 2018, Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae was detected in free-ranging caribou (Rangifer tarandus grantii) and Dall's sheep (Ovis dalli dalli) in Alaska, US. Evaluation of additional nasal swabs and archived tissues for M. ovipneumoniae suggested that this bacterium was widespread geographically and temporally in populations of both species.

Isotopic niche partitioning and individual specialization in an Arctic raptor guild.

Intra- and inter-specific resource partitioning within predator communities is a fundamental component of trophic ecology, and one proposed mechanism for how populations partition resources is through individual niche variation. The Niche Variation Hypothesis (NVH) predicts that inter-individual trait variation leads to functional trade-offs in foraging efficiency, resulting in populations composed of individual dietary specialists. The degree to which niche specialization persists within a population is plastic and responsive to fluctuating resource availability.

LABORATORY CONCORDANCE STUDY FOR THE MOLECULAR DETECTION OF MYCOPLASMA OVIPNEUMONIAE.

As part of a respiratory pathogen survey of Alaska wildlife, we conducted a concordance study to assess Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae detection among three different PCR assays using a total of 346 nasal swabs sampled from four species (Dall's sheep, Ovis dalli dalli; mountain goats, Oreamnos americanus; caribou, Rangifer tarandus granti; and moose, Alces alces gigas), and two taxonomic subfamilies (Bovidae subfamily Caprinae and Cervidae subfamily Capreolinae). A federal research laboratory performed two PCR assays (LM40 and intergenic spacer region [IGS]), and a state diagnostic laboratory performed the third (universal Mycoplasma [UM]). Overall concordance was good, ranging from 93% to 99%, which was probably a result of low detection rate of M.

Patterns and processes of pathogen exposure in gray wolves across North America.

The presence of many pathogens varies in a predictable manner with latitude, with infections decreasing from the equator towards the poles. We investigated the geographic trends of pathogens infecting a widely distributed carnivore: the gray wolf (Canis lupus). Specifically, we investigated which variables best explain and predict geographic trends in seroprevalence across North American wolf populations and the implications of the underlying mechanisms.

Whiskers as a novel tissue for tracking reproductive and stress-related hormones in North Pacific otariid pinnipeds.

Keratinized tissues, including whiskers, are ideal for acquiring a record of physiological parameters. Most tissues provide a snapshot of physiological status; however, whiskers may support longitudinal sampling for reproductive and stress-related hormones, if hormones are incorporated as whiskers grow and concentrations change with physiological state. Whiskers from female Steller sea lions () and northern fur seals () were serially sectioned and pulverized and steroid hormones were extracted.

Using claws to compare reproduction, stress and diet of female bearded and ringed seals in the Bering and Chukchi seas, Alaska, between 1953-1968 and 1998-2014.

Rapid climate warming is decreasing sea ice thickness, extent and duration. Marine mammals such as bearded () and ringed () seals, which use sea ice for pupping, molting and resting, may be negatively affected. Claws from bearded and ringed seals store up to 14 and 12 years of sequential analyte data, respectively.

Isolation and characterization of microsatellite loci in merlins (Falco columbarius) and cross-species amplification in gyrfalcons (F. rusticolus) and peregrine falcons (F. peregrinus).

Merlins, Falco columbarius, breed throughout temperate and high latitude habitats in Asia, Europe, and North America. Like peregrine falcons, F. peregrinus, merlins underwent population declines during the mid-to-late twentieth century, due to organochlorine-based contamination, and have subsequently recovered, at least in North American populations.

Stress-related and reproductive hormones in hair from three north Pacific otariid species: Steller sea lions, California sea lions and northern fur seals.

Assessing the physiological impact of stressors in pinnipeds is logistically challenging, and many hormones are altered by capture and handling, limiting the utility of metabolically active tissues. Hair is increasingly being used to investigate stress-related and reproductive hormones in wildlife populations due to less-invasive collection methods, being metabolically inert once grown and containing multiple biomarkers of ecological interest. We validated enzyme immunoassays for measuring aldosterone, cortisol, corticosterone, and testosterone in lanugo (natal hair grown ) samples collected from Steller sea lions (), California sea lions (), and northern fur seals ().

Establishing a baseline for tick surveillance in Alaska: Tick collection records from 1909-2019.

The expanding geographic ranges of tick species that are known pathogen vectors can have implications for human, domestic animal, and wildlife health. Although Alaska is home to several hard tick species, it has historically been outside of the range of the most common medically important ticks in the contiguous United States and western Canada. To assess the status of tick species establishment in the state and to provide a baseline for tracking future change in the distribution of ticks, we reviewed and compiled historical tick records and summarized recent tick occurrence records collected through the development of the Alaska Submit-A-Tick Program and through tick drag sampling at sentinel sites in southcentral Alaska.

Group structure and kinship in beluga whale societies.

Evolutionary explanations for mammalian sociality typically center on inclusive-fitness benefits of associating and cooperating with close kin, or close maternal kin as in some whale societies, including killer and sperm whales. Their matrilineal structure has strongly influenced the thinking about social structure in less well-studied cetaceans, including beluga whales. In a cross-sectional study of group structure and kinship we found that belugas formed a limited number of distinct group types, consistently observed across populations and habitats.

Determination of Thiafentanil in Plasma Using LC-MS.

A new method of analysis has been developed and validated for the determination of thiafentanil in plasma. After protein precipitation, samples were separated on an XBridge BEH C18 column and quantified using mass spectrometry. The mobile phase was a mixture of water with 0.

Viral emergence in marine mammals in the North Pacific may be linked to Arctic sea ice reduction.

Climate change-driven alterations in Arctic environments can influence habitat availability, species distributions and interactions, and the breeding, foraging, and health of marine mammals. Phocine distemper virus (PDV), which has caused extensive mortality in Atlantic seals, was confirmed in sea otters in the North Pacific Ocean in 2004, raising the question of whether reductions in sea ice could increase contact between Arctic and sub-Arctic marine mammals and lead to viral transmission across the Arctic Ocean. Using data on PDV exposure and infection and animal movement in sympatric seal, sea lion, and sea otter species sampled in the North Pacific Ocean from 2001-2016, we investigated the timing of PDV introduction, risk factors associated with PDV emergence, and patterns of transmission following introduction.

Organochlorine contaminant concentrations in blubber of young Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus) are influenced by region, age, sex, and lipid stores.

Contaminant exposure is particularly important for species and populations of conservation concern, such as the Steller sea lion (Eumetopias jubatus). We used blubber samples (n = 120) to determine organochlorine concentrations, including polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDTs), and blood samples (n = 107) to estimate total body lipids based on the hydrogen isotope dilution method. We assessed the influence of age, sex, condition, and geographic area on contaminant concentrations in blubber and contaminant body load.

Unleaded hunting: Are copper bullets and lead-based bullets equally effective for killing big game?

Semi-jacketed lead-cored or copper-based homogenous rifle bullets are commonly used for hunting big game. Ever since their introduction in the 1990's, copper-based bullets have not been widely accepted by hunters due to limited supply, higher expense, and the perception that they exhibit inferior killing efficiency and correspondingly higher wounding rates. Here, we present data showing that animal flight distances for roe deer, red deer, brown bear, and moose dispatched with lead- or copper-based hunting bullets did not significantly differ from an animal welfare standardized animal flight distance based on body mass.

Associated with Polymicrobial Pneumonia in a Free-Ranging Yearling Barren Ground Caribou () from Alaska, USA.

has been reported in association with respiratory disease in the wild only in members of the subfamily Caprinae of the family Bovidae. We identified in a cervid: a free-ranging barren ground caribou () yearling with polymicrobial bronchopneumonia.

Defining animal welfare standards in hunting: body mass determines thresholds for incapacitation time and flight distance.

Shooting is an important tool for managing terrestrial wildlife populations worldwide. To date, however, there has been few quantitative methods available enabling assessment of the animal welfare outcomes of rifle hunting. We apply a variety of factors to model flight distance (distance travelled by an animal after bullet impact) and incapacitation from the moment of bullet impact.

Transuterine infection by : Neurological migration and fatal debilitation in sibling moose calves () from Alaska.

Larval nematodes (L3), resulting from transuterine infection and neural migration, were discovered in the cerebrum of sibling moose calves () near 1-3 days in age from Alaska. We provide the first definitive identification, linking morphology, biogeography, and molecular phylogenetics, of in naturally infected ungulates. Life history and involvement of paratenic hosts across a broader assemblage of mammals, from rodents to ungulates, in the transmission of remains undefined.

Orf virus infection in Alaskan mountain goats, Dall's sheep, muskoxen, caribou and Sitka black-tailed deer.

Background: The zoonotic Orf virus (ORFV; genus Parapoxvirus, Poxviridae family) occurs worldwide and is transmitted between sheep and goats, wildlife and man. Archived tissue samples from 16 Alaskan wildlife cases, representing mountain goat (Oreamnos americanus, n = 8), Dall's sheep (Ovis dalli dalli, n = 3), muskox (Ovibos moschatus, n = 3), Sitka black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus sitkensis, n = 1) and caribou (Rangifer tarandus granti, n = 1), were analyzed.

Results: Clinical signs and pathology were most severe in mountain goats, affecting most mucocutaneous regions, including palpebrae, nares, lips, anus, prepuce or vulva, as well as coronary bands.

Molecular taxonomy and subgeneric classification of tapeworms of the genus Moniezia Blanchard, 1891 (Cestoda, Anoplocephalidae) in northern cervids (Alces and Rangifer).

Phylogenetic relationships of tapeworms of the genus Moniezia Blanchard, 1891 (Cestoda, Anoplocephalidae) parasitizing the Eurasian elk Alces alces, the moose A. americanus and the reindeer/caribou Rangifer tarandus (Cervidae) were studied using DNA sequences of two mitochondrial genes (cox1 and nad1). Several isolates from domestic ruminants, representing Moniezia expansa (Rudolphi, 1810) sensu lato and M.

Demographic history influences spatial patterns of genetic diversityin recently expanded coyote (Canis latrans) populations.

Human-mediated range expansions have increased in recent decades and represent unique opportunities to evaluate genetic outcomes of establishing peripheral populations across broad expansion fronts. Over the past century, coyotes (Canis latrans) have undergone a pervasive range expansion and now inhabit every state in the continental United States. Coyote expansion into eastern North America was facilitated by anthropogenic landscape changes and followed two broad expansion fronts.