Between February 1992 and March 1994, four species of rodent from the Snake River Birds of Prey Area near Boise, Idaho (USA) were necropsied. Hemorrhagic gastritis was observed in 16 of 131 Townsend's ground squirrels (Spermophilus townsendii), one of 11 Ord's kangaroo rats (Dipodomys ordii) and the one Great Basin pocket mouse (Perognathus parvus) evaluated. No lesions were observed in 14 whit...

Sixteen percent of California ground squirrels (Spermophilus beecheyi) were found to be shedding an average of 53,875 Cryptosporidium parvum oocysts/g of feces. Male squirrels had a higher prevalence and higher intensity of shedding than did female squirrels. The majority of C. parvum isolates matched a bovine-murine genotype, with a few isolates resembling a porcine genotype. Higher intensitie...

Culicoides imicola is considered to be one of the main vectors of bluetongue disease in the Mediterranean Basin. However, local variations occur. For example, in Italy, C. imicola is a stable and abundant population in Sardinia and is widely distributed across the island, whilst in Tuscany on the Italian mainland, it ranges from low abundance in the west and coastal areas to absence in the east...

A survey was carried out to investigate incidents of pesticide poisoning of the Cinereous vulture (Aegypius monachus) in Spain during the period 1990-2006. A total of 241 incidents affecting 464 vultures were investigated to establish their causes: approved use, misuse, or deliberate abuse. Other factors studied were compounds, other species affected by the incident, the mode of application, sp...

According to 5-Myr-old fossil evidence, ground squirrels within the genus Spermophilus had diverged into subgenera Spermophilus and Otospermophilus by late Miocene times. Radiometric dating has also provided a precise time for the sudden onset of a geological event, occurring 0.725 Myr ago, that initiated the complete and permanent reproductive isolation of two subspecies within the subgenus Ot...

Reproduction is energetically costly for mammalian females during the periods of gestation and lactation and, consequently, is likely to be associated with reduced survival (Stearns 1989, 1992 ; Roff 2002 ) , particularly when maternal condition is poor. Higher mortality may be associated with birth-related complications, but it also may be the consequence of elevated circulating levels of cort...