EHD virus (EHDV) is transmitted between ruminant hosts by species of Culicoides biting midges, thus EHD infections are strongly seasonal. White-tailed deer is the most severely affected species, with the peracute form having a high mortality rate. In cattle, clinical signs occur rarely but fever, anorexia, dysphagia, emaciation, ulcerative stomatitis, lameness, respiratory distress and erythema...

Adult female Culicoides occidentalis Wirth and Jones were collected in a coastal salt marsh habitat in southern California over a period of 15 mo using CO2-baited suction traps. Adults were active year-round. Adult females overall were large based on wing length (1.86 mm). Because of coastal influences, daily and seasonal changes in air temperatures were greatly buffered, and mean temperatures ...

Myxococcus fulvus HW-1 (ATCC BAA-855) is a halotolerant marine myxobacterium. This strain exhibits complex social behaviors in the presence of low concentrations of seawater but adopts an asocial living pattern under oceanic conditions. The whole genome of M. fulvus HW-1 will enable us to further investigate the details of its evolution.

Human pressure threatens many species and ecosystems, so conservation efforts necessarily prioritize saving them. However, conservation should clearly be proactive wherever possible. In this article, we assess the biodiversity conservation value, and specifically the irreplaceability in terms of species endemism, of those of the planet's ecosystems that remain intact. We find that 24 wilderness...

Three hundred and nine mourning doves (Zenaida macroura) from Lancaster County, Nebraska, were examined for species of Haemoproteus. Older doves possessed higher Haemoproteus prevalences than younger doves. Mean total prevalence for each dove age group was as follows: adults, 61% H. sacharovi and 83% H. maccallumi; immatures, 35% H. sacharovi and 42% H. maccallumi; and nestlings, 31% H. sacharo...

To determine which species of Culicoides biting midges carry Schmallenberg virus (SBV), we assayed midges collected in the Netherlands during autumn 2011. SBV RNA was found in C. scoticus, C. obsoletus sensu stricto, and C. chiopterus. The high proportion of infected midges might explain the rapid spread of SBV throughout Europe.

Determining the temporal relationship between climate and epidemics of Culicoides-borne viral disease may allow control and surveillance measures to be implemented earlier and more efficiently. In Israel, outbreaks of bluetongue (BT) have occurred almost annually since at least 1950, with severe episodes occurring periodically. In this paper, the authors model a twenty-year time-series of BT ou...

The adult blood-sucking females of a number of species of Culicoides are pests in many parts of the world. The irritation and annoyance caused by their attacks on man and his animals are often so great that they constitute a serious problem. The chief significance, however, of Culicoides spp. is that they may act as vectors of filarial and virus diseases to man and his animals (see Hill, 1947)....