MORTALITY DURING TREATMENT: FACTORS AFFECTING THE SURVIVAL OF OILED, REHABILITATED COMMON MURRES (URIA AALGE).

After major oil spills, hundreds to thousands of live stranded birds enter rehabilitative care. To target aspects of rehabilitative efforts for improvement and to evaluate which initial physical examination and biomedical parameters most effectively predict survival to release, medical records were examined from 913 Common Murres ( Uria aalge ; COMUs) oiled during the November 2001-January 2003 oil spill associated with the sunken S.S. Jacob Luckenbach off San Francisco, California, US. Results showed that 52% of all deaths occurred during the first 2 days of treatment. Birds stranding closest to the wreck had greater amounts of oil on their bodies than birds stranding farther away. More heavily oiled birds were in better clinical condition than birds with lesser amounts of oil, as shown by higher body mass (BM), packed cell volumes (PCV), total plasma protein (TP), and higher survival proportions. Additionally, BM, PCV, TP, and body temperature were positively correlated. For comparison, medical records from all nonoiled COMUs admitted for rehabilitation at the same facility during 2007-09 (n=468) were examined, and these variables were also found to be positively correlated. Oiled birds with BM under 750 g had approximately 5% lower PCV than BM-matched nonoiled COMUs. More heavily oiled COMUs may be in better condition than less oiled birds because heavily oiled birds must beach themselves immediately to avoid drowning and hypothermia, whereas lightly oiled birds may postpone beaching until exhausted due to extreme body catabolism. The strong relationship of PCV to BM regardless of oiling provides evidence that anemia commonly encountered in oiled seabirds may be a sequela to overall loss of body condition rather than solely due to toxic effects of oiling. Clinical information garnered in this study provides guidance for triage decisions during oil spills.

Monitoring of fungal loads in seabird rehabilitation centers with comparisons to natural seabird environments in northern California.

Aspergillosis remains a major cause of mortality in captive and rehabilitated seabirds. To date, there has been poor documentation of fungal (particularly Aspergillus spp.) burdens in natural seabird loafing and roosting sites compared with fungal numbers in rehabilitation or captive settings and the various microenvironments that seabirds are exposed to during the rehabilitation process. This study compares fungal, particularly Aspergillus spp., burdens potentially encountered by seabirds in natural and rehabilitation environments. Differences among the various microenvironments in the rehabilitation facility were evaluated to determine the risk of infection when seabirds are experiencing high stress and poor immune function. Aspergillus spp. counts were quantified in three wildlife rehabilitation centers and five natural seabird loafing and roosting sites in northern California using a handheld impact air sampler and a water filtration system. Wildlife rehabilitation centers demonstrated an increase in numbers of conidia of Aspergillus spp. and Aspergillus fumigatus in air and water samples from select aquatic bird rehabilitation centers compared with natural seabird environments in northern California. Various microenvironments in the rehabilitation facility were identified as having higher numbers of conidia of Aspergillus spp. These results suggest that periodic monitoring of multiple local areas, where the birds spend time in a rehabilitation facility, should be done to identify "high risk" sites, where birds should spend minimal time, or sites that should be cleaned more frequently or have improved air flow to reduce exposure to fungal conidia. Overall, these results suggest that seabirds may be more likely to encounter Aspergillus spp. in various microenvironments in captivity, compared with their native habitats, which could increase their risk of developing disease when in a debilitated state.

Assessment of plasma concentrations and potential adverse effects of doxycycline in cockatiels (Nymphicus hollandicus) fed a medicated pelleted diet.

Doxycycline hyclate was mixed with soybean oil and then added to a low-fat pelleted diet that contained approximately 2.4% fat, which produced a final diet that contained a calculated 6.4% fat and 300 mg doxycycline per kilogram of diet. The medicated diet was fed to 9 healthy adult cockatiels (Nymphicus hollandicus) for 47 days; a control group of 6 birds received the identical diet without doxycycline. Trough doxycycline plasma concentrations were measured 7 times during treatment and ranged from 0.98 to 3.83 microg/mL with an overall median of 2.09 microg/ mL. The birds were observed daily, weighed, and examined at least weekly, and selected plasma biochemical parameters were measured before treatment and at days 21 and 42. No adverse effects were noted, except one treatment bird became obese. This medicated diet may be suitable for treating spiral bacteria and Chlamydophila psittaci infections in cockatiels that will consume a pelleted diet.

Molecular sub-typing suggests that the environment of rehabilitation centers may be a potential source of Aspergillus fumigatus infecting rehabilitating seabirds.

Aspergillosis remains a major cause of infection-related avian mortality in birds that are debilitated and undergoing rehabilitation for release into the wild. This study was designed to understand the source of avian aspergillosis in seabirds undergoing rehabilitation at selected northern California aquatic bird rehabilitation centers. Air, surface and water sampling was performed between August 2007 and July 2008 in three such centers and selected natural seabird loafing sites. Average air Aspergillus fumigatus counts were at least nine times higher in samples obtained from the rehabilitation sites (M = 7.34, SD = 9.78 CFU/m(3)), when compared to those found at natural sites (M = 0.76, SD = 2.24 CFU/m(3)), t (205) = -5.99, P < 0.001. A total of 37 A. fumigatus isolates from birds with confirmed aspergillosis and 42 isolates from environmental samples were identified using both morphological and molecular methods, and subsequently sub-typed using an eight-locus microsatellite panel with the neighbor joining algorithm. Results of the study demonstrated the presence of five clonal groups, 13 genotypically related clusters, and 59 distinct genotypes. Six of the 13 genotypically related clusters contained matching genotypes between clinical isolates and local environmental isolates from the rehabilitation center in which these birds were housed. We present evidence that the environment of rehabilitation centers may be a source for A. fumigatus infection in rehabilitated seabirds.

Effects of freshwater housing and fluid types on aquatic bird serum electrolyte concentrations.

Recent seabird mass morbidity events have highlighted the need to elucidate the effects of freshwater and hypertonic saline use for fluid therapy and housing in captive aquatic birds. Serum electrolyte concentrations of northern fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis; n = 9), western grebes (Aechmophorus occidentalis; n = 6), and common murres (Uria aalge; n = 25) housed on freshwater while undergoing rehabilitation at the San Francisco Bay Oiled Wildlife Care and Education Center in Fairfield, California, were compared to reference intervals from free-ranging populations. Additionally, northern fulmars were given intermittent oral boluses of hypertonic saline. In birds housed on freshwater, there were significant decreases in serum sodium and chloride, with 44% of northern fulmars and 72% of common murres falling below the established reference interval. All of the western grebes were able to maintain serum sodium and chloride within the reference intervals. The significance of these findings reflect the behavior and natural history of the species studied. The physiologic regulation of salt by the salt glands, gastrointestinal tract, and renal systems of seabirds, along with their behavior and natural history, should be considered when working with these birds in a rehabilitation or captive setting. Salt supplementation is necessary for some species of seabirds. Monitoring of serum electrolytes should be used for individual animals or salt supplementation should be considered in holopelagic species.

Short-term survival and effects of transmitter implantation into western grebes using a modified surgical procedure.

Two pilot trials and one study in a closely related grebe species suggest that Western grebes (Aechmophorus occidentalis) will not tolerate intracoelomic transmitter implantation with percutaneous antennae and often die within days of surgery. Wild Western grebes (n = 21) were captured to evaluate a modified surgical technique. Seven birds were surgically implanted with intracoelomic transmitters with percutaneous antennae by using the modified technique (transmitter group), 7 received the same surgery without transmitter implantation (celiotomy group), and 7 served as controls (only undergoing anesthesia). Modifications included laterally offsetting the body wall incision from the skin incision, application of absorbable cyanoacrylate tissue glue to the subcutaneous space between the body wall and skin incisions, application of a waterproof sealant to the skin incision after suture closure, and application of a piece of porcine small intestine submucosa to the antenna egress. Survival did not differ among the 3 groups with 7 of 7 control, 6 of 7 celiotomy, and 6 of 7 transmitter birds surviving the 9-day study. Experimental birds were euthanized at the end of the study, and postmortem findings indicated normal healing. Significant differences in plasma chemistry or immune function were not detected among the 3 groups, and only minor differences were detected in red blood cell indices and plasma proteins. After surgery, the birds in the transmitter group spent more time preening tail feathers than those in the control and celiotomy groups. These results demonstrate that, in a captive situation, celiotomy and intracoelomic transmitter implantation caused minimal detectable homeostatic disturbance in this species and that Western grebes can survive implantation of intracoelomic transmitters with percutaneous antennae. It remains to be determined what potential this modified surgical procedure has to improve postoperative survival of Western grebes that are intracelomically implanted with transmitters with percutaneous antennae and released into the wild.

Toxoplasmosis in three species of native and introduced Hawaiian birds.

Toxoplasma gondii was found in endemic Hawaiian birds, including 2 nene geese (Nesochen sandvicensis), 1 red-footed booby (Sula sula), and an introduced bird, the Erckels francolin (Francolinus erckelii). All 4 birds died of disseminated toxoplasmosis; the parasite was found in sections of many organs, and the diagnosis was confirmed by immunohistochemical staining with anti-T. gondii-specific polyclonal antibodies. This is the first report of toxoplasmosis in these species of birds.