Histopathologic, ultrastructural, and negative-staining studies indicated that nodular lesions on the flippers, head, and necks of recently weaned, captive grey seals (Halichoerus grypus) were similar to sealpox lesions reported from several other species of seals. Virions associated with the nodules were characteristic of the parapoxvirus subgroup of pox viruses. Two of the three persons handling the seals developed nodular lesions similar to “milker's nodules, ” the characteristic lesion in persons infected with parapoxvirus. The clinical course of the parapoxvirus infection in both the grey seals and their handlers is described. It was concluded that although sealpox is transmissible to man, the mild clinical manifestations place it in the nuisance category of zoonotic diseases.

Tissue samples were removed at necropsy from five American bison (Bison bison) with clinical signs of a disease resembling malignant catarrhal fever (MCF). Using cell associated virus techniques, attempts were made to isolate viruses from these tissues by culturing them directly or by co-culture with bovine fetal cells. Among the viruses isolated was one which was syncytiogenic and multiplied in bovine fetal spleen cells and remained highly cell-associated. The presence of reverse transcriptase activity indicated that it was a retrovirus. Also, it had antigenic cross activity with bovine syncytial virus, but not with bovine leukemia or bovine maedi-like retroviruses. We do not attribute a direct causative role of this retrovirus to MCF, but indirect relationships are possible.

Sera collected from a captive population of white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) penned in the lower peninsula of Michigan were assayed over a 29-mo period for neutralizing antibody to California serogroup viruses. In all, 130 individual white-tailed deer were bled one to 22 times between June 1983 and November 1985. Of the 130 sampled after active transmission had ceased, or passage of maternal antibody in colostrum had occurred, only one (0.8%), a newborn fawn, had no serum neutralizing antibody to California group viruses. All 18 1-yr-old does sampled acquired specific neutralizing antibody to Jamestown Canyon (JC) virus within a 6-wk period in 1984 and within a 10-wk period in 1985 indicating the prevalence of infection in this nonimmune age group was 100% for 2 successive yr. All 32 2- to 7-yr-old adult does and eight bucks sampled between June 1983 and June 1985 had specific neutralizing antibody to JC virus. No white-tailed deer had specific neutralizing antibody to trivittatus or La Crosse/snowshoe I hare viruses at this study site. In 1984 and 1985, 78% and 63% of the adult does respectively exhibited significant anamnestic responses; all 19 adult does sampled over two seasons (between October 1983 and June 1985) showed a significant anamnestic response during at least 1 of the 2 yr. One-third of adult does with significant springtime antibody titer increases apparently experienced reexposure prior to the emergence of aedine mosquitoes, suggesting an alternate vector may overwinter at this site and transmit viruses in early spring. Specific neutralizing antibody was detected in 98% (66/67) of nursing fawns bled within 5 wk of birth in May–June 1984 and 1985, including three of three nursing fawns bled within 24–96 hr of birth. Of the 66 newborn fawns with specific neutralizing antibody to JC virus in June 1984 and 1985, 95% (54/57) of the surviving fawns lost maternal antibody and had no measurable titer when sampled 20–24 wk after birth, however. Serum antibody titers in 25 newborn (1984-cohort) fawns and their mothers and titers in 38 newborn (1985-cohort) fawns and their mothers were significantly correlated at the 5% and 1% levels respectively, suggesting that maternal antibody rather than a naturally acquired infection was the source of immunity in these suckling fawns. Passive immunity provided to the fawns in this natural focus of JC virus assures a sizeable cohort of susceptible 1-yr-old deer every spring for potential virus amplification and dissemination; maternal antibody is characterized as an important component of the natural cycle of JC virus in the upper midwestern United States.

The annual seroconversion of fawns, yearlings, and adult white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) to Jamestown Canyon virus (California group) was followed at six Indiana sites from 1981 through 1984. In all, sera from 1,642 deer (515 fawns, 618 yearlings, and 509 adults) were tested for neutralizing antibody to three California serogroup viruses: Jamestown Canyon, La Crosse, and trivittatus. Virtually all deer with specific neutralizing antibody showed evidence of a prior infection with Jamestown Canyon virus; only three deer showed evidence of a prior infection with only La Crosse virus and none showed evidence of an infection with only trivittatus virus. While there were no significant differences in antibody prevalence to Jamestown Canyon virus between yearling and adult deer at any site, fawns had significantly lower antibody prevalences than either of the two older age groups. Significant differences in antibody prevalence were found between northern versus southern populations of white-tailed deer in Indiana, however, no significant differences were found among the four northern populations or between the two southern populations. The mean antibody prevalences in the two southern fawn, yearling, and adult populations were 15%, 38%, and 41% respectively, while the prevalences in the four northern fawn, yearling, and adult populations were 5%, 67%, and 67% respectively. These different prevalences (northern vs. southern) correlate with the higher Jamestown Canyon virus antibody prevalence in human residents of northern Indiana (2–15%) compared to residents of southern Indiana (<2%) found in other studies. The significantly lower prevalence of antibody to Jamestown Canyon virus in fawns is attributed to maternal antibody protecting them from a primary infection their first summer. Yearling deer showed high rates of seroconversion following their second summer of life. These results suggest that infection of white-tailed deer in Indiana with Jamestown Canyon virus is a common phenomenon.

Sera from 145 Steller sea lions (76 adults, three subadults, 37 pups, and 29 fetuses) were tested for neutralizing antibodies to nine marine calicivirus serotypes. Antibodies were found to San Miguel sea lion virus (SMSV) types 1, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 and 13, and to Tillamook (bovine) calicivirus, but no antibodies were found to the walrus calicivirus. Titers (microtiter neutralization assay) ranged from 1:20 to 1:320, with many positive reactions at the higher dilutions (≥1:80). Antibodies to SMSV's 5 and 10 were most common among animals sampled in Alaskan waters, while antibodies to SMSV-6 were most common among pups from the southern Oregon coast. These data provide evidence that Steller sea lions, like their California sea lion (Zalophus c. californianus Lesson) counterparts, have experienced widespread exposure to multiple serotypes of marine caliciviruses.

Neutralizing antibodies to Tillamook calicivirus (TCV) were found in sera collected from California sea lions (Zalophus c. californianus Lesson) in 1983 and 1984 and in sera collected from Steller sea lions (Eumetopias jubatus Schreber) in 1976 and 1985. The combined prevalence of antibodies for these two species was 10/228 = 4.38%. Titers ranged from 1:20 (five animals), to 1:40 (four animals), to 1:80 (one animal) by standard microtiter neutralization assay. The seropositive pinnipeds were dispersed widely along the margins of the eastern Pacific rim, from the Bering Sea to the Santa Barbara Channel. Antibodies to TCV were not found in sera collected from northern fur seals (Callorhinus ursinus L.), Pacific walruses (Odobenus rosmarus divergens Illiger), seals of the family Phocidae, or several cetacean species. Tillamook calicivirus was isolated originally in 1981 from dairy calves in Oregon; the finding of neutralizing antibodies in two widely distributed species of sea lions suggests the possibility of a marine origin for this agent.

Aegyptianella ranarum sp. n. (Rickettsiales, Anaplasmataceae) was recorded from bullfrogs (Rana catesbeiana Shaw), green frogs (Rana clamitans Latreille) and mink frogs (Rana septentrionalis Baird) from five sites in southern Ontario. The rickettsia occurs within membrane bound vacuoles in the cytoplasm of erythrocytes with up to 120 organisms in mature inclusions. The pattern of replication of A. ranarum in host erythrocytes and its prevalence over a 3-yr period in frogs from Algonquin Park, Ontario are discussed.

Agglutinins to Leptospira were found at titers of ≥1:100 in 150 of 501 (29.9%) vervet monkeys (Cercopithecus aethiops sabaeus) bled within 1 mo of capture in Barbados. Including a further 34 of 145 bled within 1 yr of capture, the seropositivity prevalence was 28.5%. A further 35 monkeys (5.4%) had traces of agglutinins or gave titers of 1:50. The proportion of seropositive adults (41.5%) was more than twice that of seropositive immature monkeys (17.6%). Among adults, 49.2% of males and 35.7% of females were seropositive, while among juveniles proportions of seropositive males and females were similar (17.8% and 17.4%, respectively). Seropositivity prevalences tended to increase in proportion to rainfall. In each of 165 of the 184 positive sera, a single serogroup predominated in the serological reactions. These serogroups were Ballum (61%), Icterohaemorrhagiae (16%), Autumnalis (15%), Pyrogenes, Panama, Pomona, Tarassovi and Canicola (8% altogether). In the other 19 positive sera no single serogroup predominated. Serial bleeding showed that vervet monkeys can retain naturally acquired antibodies to Leptospira for at least 2.5 yr. The evidence suggests that vervet monkeys in Barbados are transmitting leptospiral infections among themselves independently of other groups of animals, and are not a major source of human leptospirosis.

Mouse-lethal toxin identified as that of Clostridium botulinum type C by antitoxin neutralization was present in cultures of 38.0% of 326 soil samples collected from 28 wetlands in Saskatchewan. There was no difference in prevalence of toxicity between samples collected in spring and summer, and no relationship was evident between the occurrence of toxicity and water salinity, marsh type or water depth. There was a strong association between the prior occurrence of avian botulism in a marsh and the presence of toxin in cultures from soil; 59.2% of soil samples from marshes with a known history of botulism produced toxin, whereas only 6.2% of soil samples from marshes with no history of the disease produced toxin. Eight of the 10 soil samples collected from a marsh that had been dry for several years, and from another marsh that had not had a recognized outbreak of botulism for 11 yr produced toxin, indicating a long residual effect after a botulism outbreak. The results suggest that any wetland with a history of botulism is likely to suffer repeated occurrences because of heavy contamination of the soil with spores, and should be managed to control the disease.

Serum samples were collected from 116 wolves which were captured in southcentral Alaska during 1975 through 1982. Antibodies to the following infectious disease agents were found: infectious canine hepatitis virus—72 of 87 (81%), canine parvovirus type 2—0 of 55 (0%) through 1979 and 10 of 32 (31%) after 1979, Francisella tularensis— 16 of 67 (25%), canine distemper virus—10 of 83 (12%), Coxiella burnetti—5 of 95 (5%), rabies virus—1 of 88 (1%), Brucella spp.—1 of 67 (1%), Leptospira interrogans—1 of 82 (1%). Apparently rabies, brucellosis, and leptospirosis were rare and had little effect on the wolf population. Conversely, the other five infections were comparatively common and may have had a negative impact on the health of specific individual wolves, but did not appear to influence the health of the population.

Specimens from 28 wapiti (Cervus elaphus canadensis) were collected by hunters in southwestern Alberta in 1984. Various tests were performed to detect infections and conditions that could affect cattle sharing the range or cause disease in wapiti. Serum antibodies were present against leptospiral serovars autumnalis (25%), bratislava (4%), and icterohaemorrhagiae (8%), and the viruses of bovine virus diarrhea (52%), infectious bovine rhinotracheitis (45%), and parainfluenza type 3 (13%). No serological evidence of bovine respiratory syncytial virus, Brucella, Anaplasma, bluetongue virus, or epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus was found, nor were any lesions of vesicular diseases, necrotic stomatitis or nutritional myopathy evident. Focal interstitial nephritis and sarcocystosis were diagnosed histologically in 40% and 75%, respectively, of the wapiti tested. The prevalence of giant liver flukes (Fascioloides magna) was 50% and of lungworms (Dictyocaulus viviparus) 32%. Leptospiral serology on cattle in the area did not indicate that wapiti or cattle were a serious source of infection to each other. The giant liver fluke was the parasite most likely to be amplified by wapiti for cattle. Within the limits of this study, the results indicated that wapiti in the Waterton area do not pose a disease threat to the cattle with which they range, but periodic observational studies in these wapiti would be a useful means of early detection of any changes in the interspecies relationship.

Sera from four bowhead whales (Balaena mysticetus L.) were examined for the presence of specific antibodies, and tissue and swab samples from six and four animals respectively were processed for isolation of viruses and for initiation of bowhead whale cell cultures. All sera were negative for antibodies to nine serovars of Leptospira interrogans and to 21 orthomyxovirus subtypes and a paramyxovirus (Newcastle disease virus). All sera were positive, however, for neutralizing antibodies to one or more calicivirus serotypes. Two untyped adenoviruses were isolated from colon samples of two different whales, but neutralizing antibodies to the agents could not be demonstrated in any sera. Three primary bowhead whale cell cultures were derived from kidney (two cultures) and testis (one culture), from three individual whales.

Babesia bigemina was experimentally transmitted from cattle to bison and back to cattle. One spleen-intact and two splenectomized American bison (Bison bison) inoculated with a B. bigemina stabilate exhibited clinical and hematological signs of babesiosis within 10 days of exposure. Blood from the infected bison produced disease in a splenectomized bovine steer.

Between September 1982 and January 1984, verminous colitis was diagnosed post mortem in eight red-footed tortoises (Geochelone carbonaria) and three leopard tortoises (Geochelone pardalis) from the reptile collection of the National Zoological Park. This represented 69% of 16 tortoise necropsy accessions for that period. Etiology was determined to be a viviparous pinworm-like nematode of the genus Proatractis (Family Atractidae). Clinical signs were either nonspecific, consisting of anorexia, lethargy, and depression, or were absent. Limited trials with piperazine citrate and fenbendazole appeared to be ineffectual against the parasite and supportive therapy was unsuccessful. Post mortem examination revealed roughening and thickening of the mucosa of the cecum and colon, and in severe cases myriads of tiny (0.5–1.0 cm) nematodes were evident on the mucosal surface. In six tortoises, worms were found also in the small intestine. Histopathologic features in severe cases included mucosal necrosis with parasites and mixed inflammatory cells extending into the tunica muscularis. Focal to diffuse lymphoplasmacytic infiltrates were present consistently in the submucosa of the cecum and colon, and similar but milder lesions occasionally occurred in the small intestine.

The prevalence of the lungworm, Dictyocaulus eckerti, was studied in a sample of 603 roe-deer (Capreolus capreolus) in the Rhone district of France. The mean prevalence of infection (17%) in deer in a given area fluctuated according to the percentage of the area covered with forest, or lake and river. The density of roe-deer or domestic ruminants, the type of forest and the maximum elevation of the site were not related to the prevalence of infection.

Hybridizing populations of mule (Odocoileus hemionus) and white-tailed deer (O. virginianus) from the Davis Mountains of Texas were examined to determine similarities in species composition of their helminth communities and if abundances of helminth species in those communities varied across host species and seasonal factors. Only three cestode and three nematode species were recovered. There were very low abundances of species and little diversity in the helminth communities of both hosts. Common helminth species were shared by both deer, and the significant variance in abundances of three of the four most common helminth species appeared to result from differences in habitat preferences of the respective hosts. Our results indicated that analyses of helminth communities of deer from this geographical area do not provide a useful quantification technique for determining deer condition, degree of hybridization, or levels of intraspecific competition.

Sporulated oocysts of Eimeria lettyae were administered orally to 5-day-old or 18-day-old northern bobwhites (Colinus virginianus, L.). Five-day-old bobwhites were more susceptible based on higher mortality and reduced weight gain. A dose of 5 × 10⁵ oocysts produced 25–43% mortality in 5-day-old bobwhites, but none in 18-day-old bobwhites. A dose of 1 × 10⁶ oocysts/bobwhite produced 83–100% mortality in 5-day-old bobwhites, and 17–83% mortality in 18-day-old bobwhites. Body weight gain was reduced significantly with a dose of 1 × 10⁵ oocysts or greater in 5-day-old bobwhites and with a dose of 5 × 10⁵ oocysts or greater in 18-day-old bobwhites. Infection in all age groups reduced concentrations of plasma pigment and plasma protein, but did not affect packed cell volumes. No grossly visible lesions were present in the intestine although there was a shortening of the villi in the duodenum. In mature bobwhites, infection with E. lettyae did not cause mortality, but did reduce egg production and fertility.

Approximately 300 geese, primarily lesser Canada geese (Branta canadensis parvipes) were found unable to fly or dead on a small hypersaline lake (conductivity 77,000–90,000 μmhos/cm) in western Saskatchewan in September 1985. The birds were heavily encrusted with sodium sulfate crystals. Dead birds that were necropsied had aspirated lake water and had evidence of acute muscle degeneration. The live geese (155) were captured and moved to nearby freshwater wetlands where most apparently survived. Some birds died of severe myopathy after translocation. Five northern shovelers (Anas clypeata) were found encrusted with salt and unable to fly on the lake approximately 10 days later. Salt encrustation apparently occurred when rapid cooling of the lake resulted in supersaturation and crystallization of the dissolved salt. A local resident recalled similar events occurring on the lake in autumn on at least two other occasions during the past 50 yr.

The influence of fluoride emissions from a modern aluminum smelter on concentrations of skeletal fluoride and dental fluorosis in a resident population of white-tailed deer was studied. The smelter was located on Mount Holly Plantation in South Carolina, and concentrations of skeletal fluoride in the deer collected at Mount Holly increased approximately five-fold 3 yr after the operation began. Increases in skeletal fluoride of less than two-fold were observed in deer obtained from Medway Plantation which has its nearest boundary 1.6 km from the smelter site. No dental fluorosis was observed in deer collected at Medway Plantation, but mild dental fluorosis was observed in a significant number of deer collected at Mount Holly Plantation. The dental fluorosis that was observed was not associated with incisor wear or with fluoride-induced molar wear. Osteofluorosis of mandibles or metacarpals was not observed in any of the deer obtained from either plantation. The data obtained from this study indicated that the presence of a modern aluminum smelter caused a detectable increase in concentration of skeletal fluoride in the resident population of white-tailed deer, but that no adverse health effects were seen.

Between 1981 and 1982 blood samples were collected from 64 adult San Joaquin kit foxes, Vulpes macrotis mutica, in western Kern County, California. The goal of the study was to establish normal blood values for this endangered species, and to determine whether changes in them could be used to assess the possible effects of petroleum developments on these foxes. None of the values differed significantly between the sexes, or between foxes sampled in developed habitats compared with foxes sampled in undisturbed habitats. Mean values of Hb, MCH, MCHC, and WBC counts differed significantly between summer and winter. Average hematological characteristics were: RBC, 8.4 × 10⁶/μ1; Hb, 14.5 g/dl (summer), 15.6 g/dl (winter); PCV, 46.9%; MCV, 56.3 fl; MCH, 17.8 pg (summer), 18.4 pg (winter); MCHC, 31.2 g/dl (summer), 33.2 g/dl (winter); and WBC, 6,200/ μl (summer), 7,500/μl (winter). Comparisons of hematological data for kit foxes, coyotes (Canis latrans), and wolves (Canis lupus) confirmed a previously published observation that within mammalian families RBC counts are correlated inversely with body weight, and that MCV is correlated directly with body weight.