• 1.

    Ginsburg J, 2003. The new polio? New Sci 178: 4143.

  • 2.

    Sovada MA, Pietz PJ, Converse KA, King DT, Hofmeister EK, Scherr P, Ip HS, 2008. Impact of West Nile virus and other mortality factors on American White Pelicans at breeding colonies in the northern plains of North America. Biol Conserv 141: 10211031.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 3.

    King DT, Anderson DW, 2005. Recent population status of the American White Pelican: a continental perspective. Waterbirds (Special Publication 1) 28: 4854.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 4.

    Marra P, Griffing S, Caffrey C, Kilpatrick AM, McLean R, Brand C, Saito E, Dupuis AP, Kramer L, Novak R, 2004. West Nile virus and wildlife. Bioscience 54: 393402.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 5.

    Bell JA, Mickelson NJ, Vaughan JA, 2005. West Nile virus in host-seeking mosquitoes within a residential neighborhood in Grand Forks, North Dakota. Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis 5: 373382.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 6.

    Chuang T, 2011. Weather and land cover influences on mosquito populations in Sioux Falls, South Dakota. J Med Entomol 48: 669679.

  • 7.

    Hale KM, 2007. Investigations of the West Nile virus tranmission cycle at Medicine Lake National Widlife Refuge, Montana 2005–2006. Master's Thesis, Montana State University, Bozeman, MT.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 8.

    Langevin SA, Bunning M, Davis DB, Komar N, 2001. Experimental infection of chickens as candidate sentinels for West Nile virus. Emerg Infect Dis 7: 726729.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 9.

    McLean RG, Ubico SR, Docherty DE, Hansen WR, Sileo L, McNamara TW, 2001. West Nile virus transmission and ecology in birds. Ann N Y Acad Sci 951: 5457.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 10.

    Banet-Noach C, Simanov L, Malkinson M, 2003. Direct (nonvector) transmission of West Nile virus in geese. Avian Pathol 32: 489494.

  • 11.

    Austin JR, Whiting TL, Anderson RA, Drebot MA, 2004. An outbreak of West Nile virus-associated disease in domestic geese (Anser anser domesticus) upon initial introduction to a geographic region, with evidence of bird to bird transmission. Can Vet J 43: 117123.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 12.

    Dawson JR, Stone WB, Ebel GD, Young D, Galinski DS, Pensabene JP, Franke MA, Eidson M, Kramer LD, 2007. Crow deaths caused by West Nile virus during winter. Emerg Infect Dis 13: 19121914.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 13.

    Reisen W, Wheeler SS, Yamamoto S, Fang Y, Garcia S, 2005. Nesting ardeid colonies are not a focus of elevated West Nile virus activity in southern California. Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis 5: 258266.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 14.

    Stout WE, Cassini AG, Meece JK, Papp JM, Rosenfield RN, Reed KD, 2005. Serologic evidence of West Nile virus infection in three wild raptor populations. Avian Dis 49: 371375.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 15.

    Hahn DC, Nemeth NM, Edwards E, Bright PR, Komar N, 2006. Passive West Nile virus antibody transfer from maternal Eastern Screech-Owls (Megascops asio) to progeny. Avian Dis 50: 454455.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 16.

    Nemeth NM, Bowen RA, 2007. Dynamics of passive immunity to West Nile virus in Domestic Chickens (Gallus gallus domesticus). Am J Trop Med Hyg 76: 310317.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 17.

    Staszewski VJ, McCoy KD, Tveraa T, Boulinier T, 2007. Interannual dynamics of antibody levels in naturally infected long-lived colonial birds. Ecology 88: 31833191.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 18.

    Nemeth MN, Oesterle PT, Bowen RA, 2008. Passive immunity to West Nile virus provides limited protection in a common passerine species. Am J Trop Med Hyg 79: 283290.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 19.

    Gibbs SEJ, Hoffman DM, Stark LM, Marlenee NL, Blitvich BJ, Beaty BJ, Stallknecht DE, 2005. Persistence of antibodies to West Nile virus in naturally infected rock pigeons (Columba livia). Clin Diagn Lab Immunol 12: 665667.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 20.

    Staszewski V, Gasparini J, McCoy KD, Tveraa T, Boulinier T, 2007. Evidence of an interannual effect of maternal immunization on the immune response of juveniles in a long-lived colonial bird. J Anim Ecol 76: 12151223.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 21.

    Beaty BJ, Calisher CH, Shope RE, 1989. Arboviruses. Schmidt NJ, Emmons RW, eds. Diagnostic Procedures for Viral Rickettsial and Chalamydial Infections. Washington, DC: American Public Health Association, 797855.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 22.

    Blitvich BJ, Marlenee NL, Hall RA, Calisher CH, Bowen RA, Roehrig JT, Komar N, Langevin S, Beaty B, 2003. Epitope-blocking enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays for the detection of serum antibodies to West Nile virus in multiple avian species. J Clin Microbiol 41: 10411047.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 23.

    SAS Institute, 2010. SAS OnlineDoc 9.2. Cary, NC: SAS Institute, Inc.

  • 24.

    Reinert W, 1989. The New Jersey Light Trap: An Old Standard for Most Mosquito Control Programs. Proceedings of the Seventy-Sixth Annual Meeting of the New Jersey Mosquito Control Association. Available at: http://www.rci.rutgers.edu/∼insects/njtrap.htm. Accessed May 16, 2012.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 25.

    Komar N, Langevin S, Hinten S, Nemeth N, Edwards E, Hettler D, Davis B, Bowen R, Bunning M, 2003. Experimental infection of North American birds with the New York 1999 strain of West Nile virus. Emerg Infect Dis 9: 311322.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 26.

    Artsob H, Gubler DJ, Enria DA, Morales MA, Pupo M, Bunning ML, Dudley JP, 2009. West Nile virus in the New World: trends in the spread and proliferation of West Nile virus in the Western Hemisphere. Zoonoses Public Health 56: 357369.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 27.

    Apanius V, 1998. Ontogeny of immune function. Starck JM, Ricklefs RE, eds. Avian Growth and Development—Evolution within the Altricial-Precocial Spectrum. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press, 203222.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 28.

    Al Natour MQ, Ward LA, Saif YM, Stewart-Brown B, Keck LD, 2004. Effect of different levels of maternally derived antibodies on protection against infectious bursal disease virus. Avian Dis 48: 177182.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 29.

    Hutcheson HJ, Gorham CH, Machain-Williams C, Lorońo-Pino MA, James AM, Marlenee NL, Winn B, Beaty BJ, Blair CD, 2005. Experimental transmission of West Nile virus (Flaviviridae: Flavivirus) by Carios capensis ticks from North America. Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis 5: 293295.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 30.

    Mumcuoglu KY, Banet-Noach C, Malkinson M, Shalom U, Galun R, 2005. Argasid ticks as possible vectors of West Nile virus in Israel. Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis 5: 6571.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 31.

    Gancz AY, Barker IK, Lindsay R, Dibernardo A, Mckeever K, Hunter B, 2004. West Nile virus outbreak in North American owls, Ontario, 2002. Emerg Infect Dis 10: 21352142.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 32.

    Naugle DE, Aldridge CL, Walker BL, Cornish TE, Moynahan B, Holloran M, Brown K, Johnson G, Schmidtmann E, Mayer R, Kato C, Matchett M, Christiansen T, Cook W, Creekmore T, Falise R, Rinkes E, Boyce M, 2004. West Nile virus: pending crisis for Greater Sage-Grouse. Ecol Lett 7: 704713.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 33.

    Knopf FL, Evans RM, 2004. American White Pelican (Pelecanus erythrorhynchos). Poole A, ed. The Birds of North America Online. Available at: http://bna.birds.cornell.edu/BNA/account/American_White_Pelican/. Accessed May 3, 2012.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 34.

    Johnson G, Nemeth N, Hale K, Lindsey N, Panella N, Komar N, 2010. Surveillance for West Nile Virus in American White Pelicans, Montana, USA, 2006–2007. Emerg Infect Dis 16: 406411.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 35.

    LaDeau SL, Marra PP, Kilpatrick AM, Calder CA, 2008. West Nile virus revisited: consequences for North American ecology. Bioscience 58: 937946.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 36.

    Kilpatrick AM, LaDeau SL, Marra PP, 2007. Ecology of West Nile virus transmission and its impact on birds in the Western Hemisphere. Auk 124: 11211136.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 37.

    Reisen W, Brault AC, 2007. West Nile virus in North America: perspectives on epidemiology and intervention. Pest Manag Sci 63: 641646.

  • 38.

    Higgs S, Schneider BS, Vanlandingham DL, Klingler KA, Gould EA, 2005. Nonviremic transmission of West Nile virus. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 102: 88718874.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 39.

    McGee CE, Schneider BS, Girard YA, Vanlandingham DL, Higgs S, 2007. Nonviremic transmission of West Nile virus: evaluation of the effects of space, time, and mosquito species. Am J Trop Med Hyg 76: 424430.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 40.

    Reisen W, Fang Y, Martinez V, 2007. Is nonviremic transmission of West Nile virus by Culex mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) nonviremic? J Med Entomol 44: 299302.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 41.

    Pollock CG, 2008. West Nile virus in the Americas. J Avian Med Surg 22: 151157.

  • 42.

    Reed LM, Johansson MA, Panella N, McLean R, Creekmore T, Puelle R, Komar N, 2009. Declining mortality in American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) following natural West Nile virus infection. Avian Dis 53: 458461.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 43.

    Bell JA, Brewer CM, Mickelson NJ, Garman GW, Vaughan JA, 2006. West Nile virus epizootiology, Central Red River Valley, North Dakota and Minnesota, 2002–2005. Emerg Infect Dis 12: 12451247.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
  • 44.

    Brault AC, Langevin SA, Romney WN, Fang Y, Beasley DWC, Barker CM, Sanders TA, Reisen WK, Barrett AD, Bowen RA, 2011. Reduced avian virulence and viremia of West Nile virus isolates from Mexico and Texas. Am J Trop Med Hyg 85: 758767.

    • Search Google Scholar
    • Export Citation
Past two years Past Year Past 30 Days
Abstract Views 2 2 2
Full Text Views 199 74 0
PDF Downloads 52 12 0
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

West Nile Virus in American White Pelican Chicks: Transmission, Immunity, and Survival

Marsha A. SovadaUS Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, North Dakota; US Geological Survey, National Wildlife Health Center, Madison, Wisconsin

Search for other papers by Marsha A. Sovada in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Close
,
Pamela J. PietzUS Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, North Dakota; US Geological Survey, National Wildlife Health Center, Madison, Wisconsin

Search for other papers by Pamela J. Pietz in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Close
,
Erik K. HofmeisterUS Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, North Dakota; US Geological Survey, National Wildlife Health Center, Madison, Wisconsin

Search for other papers by Erik K. Hofmeister in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Close
, and
Alisa J. BartosUS Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, North Dakota; US Geological Survey, National Wildlife Health Center, Madison, Wisconsin

Search for other papers by Alisa J. Bartos in
Current site
Google Scholar
PubMed
Close
View More View Less
Restricted access

West Nile virus (WNV) causes significant mortality of American White Pelican chicks at northern plains colonies. We tested oropharyngeal/cloacal swabs from moribund chicks for shed WNV. Such shedding could enable chick-to-chick transmission and help explain why WNV spreads rapidly in colonies. WNV was detected on swabs from 11% of chicks in 2006 and 52% of chicks in 2007; however, viral titers were low. Before onset of WNV mortality, we tested blood from < 3-week-old chicks for antibodies to WNV; 5% of chicks were seropositive, suggesting passive transfer of maternal antibodies. Among near-fledged chicks, 41% tested positive for anti-WNV antibodies, indicating that they survived infection. Among years and colonies, cumulative incidence of WNV in chicks varied from 28% to 81%, whereas the proportion of chicks surviving WNV (i.e., seropositive) was 64–75%. Our data revealed that WNV kills chicks that likely would fledge in the absence of WNV, that infection of chicks is pervasive, and that significant numbers of chicks survive infection.

Author Notes

* Address correspondence to Marsha A. Sovada, US Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, 8711 37th Street SE, Jamestown, ND 58401. E-mail: msovada@usgs.gov

Financial support: This work was funded by the US Geological Survey's Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center and National Wildlife Health Center; the North Dakota Game and Fish Department; the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks Department; and federal funding through State Wildlife Grant T-27-R, Study 2427, administered through the US Fish and Wildlife Service.

Authors' addresses: Marsha A. Sovada, Pamela J. Pietz, and Alisa J. Bartos, US Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center, Jamestown, ND, E-mails: msovada@usgs.gov, ppietz@usgs.gov, and abartos@usgs.gov. Erik K. Hofmeister, US Geological Survey, National Wildlife Health Center, Madison, WI, E-mail: ehofmeister@usgs.gov.

Save