Adenovirus Hemorrhagic Disease confirmed in BC deer

November 10, 2020 by The Wildlife Society

The British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development has confirmed the first case of Adenovirus Hemorrhagic Disease in BC deer. Usually fatal, the disease can cause deer to experience difficulty breathing, foam or drool from the mouth, have diarrhea and experience seizures. Other symptoms can include ulcers and abscesses in the mouth and throat. Young animals are the most susceptible, particularly black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus).

The ministry began investigating the appearance of the disease Oct. 2 and confirmed occurrences in Maple Bay and on the Gailano and Mayne Islands. While there is no known human health risk, officials are warning hunters not to consume meat from animals found dead, ill or acting abnormally.

Read more from KelownaNow.

How susceptible are animals to coronavirus?

November 9, 2020 by The Wildlife Society

As Danish authorities prepare to kill millions of farmed mink over coronavirus concerns, it raises questions about how vulnerable other species may be, and if they may further spread the disease among humans.

“The most disturbing possibility is that the virus could mutate in animals and become more transmissible or more dangerous to humans,” writes the New York Times. “In Denmark, the virus has shifted from humans to mink and back to humans, and has mutated in the process. Mink are the only animals known to have passed the coronavirus to humans, except for the initial spillover event from an unknown species. Other animals, like cats and dogs, have been infected by exposure to humans, but there are no known cases of people being infected by exposure to their pets.”

Read more in the New York Times.

Pronghorn genetically similar throughout Wyoming

November 9, 2020 by Dana Kobilinsky

Even though pronghorn face obstacles from highways to mountain ranges across Wyoming, their genetics throughout the state are fairly similar, which seems to be good news for their viability.

“There has been tons of behavioral research on pronghorn, like GPS tracking, showing impacts that things like roads and fencing have on the species,” said TWS member Melanie LaCava, a PhD candidate at the University of Wyoming’s wildlife genomics and disease ecology lab. After winning first place in the PhD category for student posters at the 2016 TWS conference in Raleigh, North Carolina, LaCava recently published her research in the Journal of Mammalogy.

“We were interested in seeing if there were negative impacts to genetics,” LaCava said. “That would indicate long-term evolutionary impacts of humans on the environment.”

Sampling pronghorn genetics throughout the state required collaboration, so LaCava and her colleagues contacted the Wyoming Game and Fish Department for some assistance. The department collects muscle samples from hunter check stations, which LaCava and her colleagues could use for their genetics research. They also worked with the Wyoming State Veterinary Lab to get samples of pronghorn that the lab was were testing for diseases, and with University of Wyoming researchers that captured pronghorn to put GPS collars on them. “It was a huge collaborative effort interacting with them and taking advantage of those resources,” she said.

LaCava collects a genetic sample of pronghorn at a Wyoming Game and Fish Department hunter check station in Medicine Bow. Credit: Adele Reinking

LaCava and her team collected samples from 398 pronghorn — half of them male, half of them female — from across Wyoming. “Our primary goal was to spread out samples across the state as much as possible,” she said.

After examining the data, they were a bit surprised. “It seemed like pronghorn were one genetic group,” she said. “It seemed they were intermixing across the entire state.” Since it is challenging for the species to jump over fences, and highways and mountain ranges provide further obstacles, researchers expected the genetics to be differ in various parts of the state.

After collecting these data, they wanted to be sure there weren’t any subunits of populations in Wyoming, so they added a second genetic dataset to the project. They still didn’t find much variation.

LaCava said she suspects the ability for pronghorn to maintain connectivity across the landscape could be related to their migratory behavior. Pronghorn migrate seasonally, but unlike ungulates that use the same seasonal ranges and migratory routes year after year, pronghorn change strategies more often. They also don’t always stay in the same social group consistently. These flexible behaviors could mean more continual distribution of pronghorn genetics across the range.

“I think it’s a good sign that we haven’t been able to detect these barrier impacts,” LaCava said, although their relatively short evolutionary time on the landscape may also play a role. Barriers may still have an impact, she said, “but we’re just not seeing it yet in terms of genetics.”

LaCava hopes the data can be used as a comparison for future genetic research. It may also help scientists understand pronghorn disease susceptibility.

“Melanie’s study helps provide a foundation to look at heredity of genetic factors that make them susceptible to livestock diseases,” said Holly Ernest, the senior author of the study and a professor of wildlife genomics and disease ecology at the University of Wyoming. Researchers at the university recently discovered that Wyoming pronghorn experienced a recent die-off due to the livestock disease Mycoplasma bovis.

LaCava’s team is now conducting genetic research on other Wyoming ungulates, like bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis), elk (Cervus canadensis) and mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus). “We can bring multiple species information together to use as much information as we can to make decisions, so conservation funding can be used as efficiently as possible,” she said.

Invasive lizards in Florida adapt to colder temperatures

November 9, 2020 by Joshua Rapp Learn

Invasive lizards are chilling in Florida — literally. The reptiles are adapting quickly to colder temperatures than they experience in their native tropical regions, prompting fears that the reptiles may continue to spread northward into new ecosystems.

New research tracking how lizards can adapt to colder temperatures also has implications for native species. Researchers looked at how native species cope with changing climate conditions, including sudden cold snaps, which are becoming increasingly common in warmer areas unaccustomed to such dramatic temperature shifts.

“This is a remarkable example of resilience in the tropical lizards that survived [a cold snap],” said Colin Donihue, a postdoctoral research fellow in biology at Washington University in St. Louis.

He and James Stroud, also a postdoctoral researcher at the university, became involved with frozen lizards after a cold snap hit the Miami area in January 2020, plunging temperatures down to four or five degrees Celsius. The weather was warm enough for green iguanas (Iguana iguana) to fall frozen from trees.

Before this unusually cold South Florida day, Stroud and colleagues had fortuitously done other research that indicated that different species in the area could tolerate different degrees of cold. They and other colleagues had chilled about 60 individuals from a handful of lizard species in the laboratory, prodding their legs as the temperature dropped. The coldest temperatures at which researchers elicited a response — a lizard kick — gave them a rough idea how cold the lizards could get and still be functional. Native green anoles (Anolis carolensis), for example, could tolerate colder temperatures than nonnative basilisks (Basiliscus vittatus), typically found from Mexico to northern Colombia. Those and other species they tested, like brown anoles (Anolis sagrei), bark anoles (Anolis distichus), crested anoles (Anolis cristatellus) and African house geckos (Hemidactylus mabouia), all had different low temperatures in which they still responded, varying between 8.5 and 11 degrees Celsius.

A green iguana frozen on Key Biscayne near Miami. Credit: Brett Pierce

After the January cold snap, Stroud and his co-authors wanted to see whether the lizards had adapted their tolerance. They caught about 60 more lizards — roughly 10 of each of the six species — and measured their functional low temperature immediately after the cold snap. Then, they caught another 60 or so 10 weeks later, all from the Coral Gables area south of Miami.

“Using a combination of fortuitous preliminary data and some quick work on the ground right after, we were able to show that that one severe cold snap had big effects on the cold tolerance of six different lizard species,” Donihue said.

Their findings, published recently in Biology Letters, surprised the researchers. All six species seemed to tolerate a new low temperature — just over 7 degrees Celsius.

“It was very strange. It was one of the few times in our career where we’ve got a result that I was like, ‘I genuinely don’t understand that,’” Stroud said.

A green anole in Charleston, S.C. Credit: Joshua Learn

He speculates the result could be due to one of two things. Either it’s down to individual variation, and the cold snap just killed every lizard that might not be capable of tolerating the low temperatures of Jan. 22. Or, “the lizards could have internally, physiologically adjusted to tolerate temperatures that they couldn’t before.”

In either case, Stroud said that the surviving lizards seem to be able to deal with colder weather since January. This suggests the invasive lizards could move farther north than where they are currently found, he said.

Native green anoles, for example, are found as far north as North Carolina. But if these other five species can tolerate similar lows, they might also be able to spread that far. However, Stroud said, other factors besides temperature are at play when determining whether a species will succeed in a new ecosystem.

As climate change creates more dramatic extremes, such as cold snaps even in tropical areas, the study could offer some good news about lizard’s adaptability. Researchers previously believed that tropical species were quite sensitive to climate extremes, Stroud said, but this study seems to indicate otherwise.

Donihue, a co-author of the study, said this research adds to previous work he’s conducted on how hurricanes can affect surviving lizard toes and limbs.

“Since the hurricane research, we’ve been realizing how consequential extreme weather events are for the plants and animals that get caught in the crosshairs,” he said. “This study is setting the stage for lots more to come about how species can potentially adapt in response to the extreme effects of climate change.”

Colorado voters say yes to wolf reintroduction

November 6, 2020 by The Wildlife Society

Wolf proponents in Colorado slotted a big win through a ballot measure that would force the state government to reintroduce the carnivores. Proposition 114 directs Colorado Parks and Wildlife to develop a plan and reintroduce enough gray wolves (Canis lupus) to the state to ensure the survival of a population. With 91% of the votes counted as of Nov 5., opponents of the new measure, which included elk (Cervus canadensis) hunters, farmers and ranchers, conceded defeat. The votes sit at 50.4% in favor and 49.6% against. Proponents said this means “paws on the ground” within three years.

Read more at The Denver Post.

BC uses monitoring to manage Asian giant hornets

November 6, 2020 by The Wildlife Society

With the appearance of Asian giant hornets (Vespa mandarinia) in the Pacific Northwest, Washington state has focused on attaching tiny trackers to hornets in an effort to track them to their nests. British Columbia, however, is taking a different approach.

“Radio tagging is only possible when one collects a number of live specimens,” Paul van Westendorp, BC’s top apiculturist, told Victoria’s Times Colonist. “Our survey efforts in the Fraser Valley have focused on trap monitoring and the support of beekeepers and other organizations.”

Officials are monitoring sightings by municipalities, the Semiahmoo First Nation, law enforcement, beekeepers and area residents. Fifty traps have been set up to try to catch the destructive hornets, known as murder hornets for the way they capture prey.

Read more from Castanet.

Wyoming student chapter perseveres through pandemic

November 6, 2020 by The Wildlife Society

This article originally appeared in the Wyoming Chapter of The Wildlife Society’s Fall 2020 newsletter.

Through strange times, the University of Wyoming’s Student Chapter of The Wildlife Society has not let the pandemic stop them from learning about wildlife biology and providing them direction for future careers.

Using a variety of resources, the chapter has been able to involve students in multiple activities, including biweekly virtual meetings centered on guest speakers in the wildlife field and social media engagement through a wildlife photo contest. Due to a lack of face-to-face meetings, student chapter officers planned Zoom meetings with speakers they would not have had the opportunity to hear from otherwise. As of now, they’ve had three meetings with an array of guest presenters.

Their first speaker was Carmen Daggett, a regional biologist in the northernmost region of Alaska. She discussed some of her job duties, which include annual wildlife surveys as well as working with caribou, moose and wolves. In addition, she writes reports and permit reviews. Daggett talked about the importance of community outreach and educating the general public. She also discussed how she adapted to working in rural Alaska and how it’s a different environment from what most people are used to. Flexibility and respect were key traits that helped her make the most of where she was.

The chapter also heard from Rob Ogden, a professor at the University of Edinburgh and the director of TRACE Wildlife Forensics Network, an international NGO that promotes the use of forensic science in biodiversity conservation and wildlife crime investigation. He explained how wildlife forensics is used in wildlife law enforcement and some of the challenges associated with it. Ogden spoke about the processes involved in wildlife forensics and techniques used to collect data, especially DNA. He explained that DNA collection and testing is important in determining species ID and creating tools for law enforcement to identify illegal products. DNA is also used to look at different geographic locations of wildlife populations to discover trade routes and see where animals were harvested.

The chapter’s last meeting focused on career development and how to find a job, write a resume and compose a cover letter. Speaker Jake Marden, student chapter president, shared a variety of resources for where to find job postings. He also discussed important tips about writing a cover letter, such as proof reading and making it specific for your desired job. Marden also showed examples of resumes and different aspects that made them stand out. Lastly, he gave advice for general interview skills to help in the soon approaching job-hunting season.

The current coronavirus pandemic has had a dramatic effect on the chapter. “As far as COVID struggles go, trying to keep up on engagement with members has been the hardest obstacle we have had to overcome,” Marden said. “With the university’s limits, we haven’t been able to do most of the annual events and in-person events have become a lot harder to host.” Even though this year is one for the history books, members believe the pandemic has allowed their student chapter to become more connected with people they would not have been able to meet and learn from.

Apply now for USFS Native American Research Assistantship

November 6, 2020 by The Wildlife Society

The U.S. Forest Service (USFS), through partnership with The Wildlife Society, is offering research assistantships for Native American undergraduate or graduate students as part of the Native American Research Assistantship Program for Summer 2021. Applications are being accepted now through Jan. 15, 2021.

This is the seventh year for the professional development program, which facilitates opportunities for Native American students to be mentored by USFS research and development scientists. The program promotes student advancement and training for careers in natural resource and conservation-related fields. Assistantship participants aid and learn about the USFS’ ecological, science-based approach to decision-making and balancing multiple use management of national forests and grasslands.

Assistantships are available for Native American students interested in wildlife and forest resource research and management. Students will learn and work with an interdisciplinary team of researchers with the USFS during 2020. Applicants must be a member of an American Indian or Alaska Native tribe, First Nations or a Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, or have some other indigenous identification, and be currently enrolled in an undergraduate or graduate program from an accredited academic institution.

Pursuit of a bachelor’s or master’s degree in wildlife biology, ecology, forestry or other closely related natural resource discipline is preferred. Students with related associate’s degrees from tribal colleges and universities or other community colleges will also be considered.

Research projects potentially available for 2021 assistantships include:

  1. Long term monitoring of treated and untreated Mexican spotted owl (Strix occidentalis lucida) territories on tribal lands
  2. Bison grazing and grassland birds: Evaluating prairie restoration on Midewin National Tallgrass Prairie
  3. Tracking Native Species Distributions with Environmental DNA
  4. Acoustic bat surveys on the Buffalo Gap National Grassland of South Dakota

For more information, including project objectives, locations, duration and instructions on how to apply please download an application form. The deadline for applications is Jan. 15, 2021.

For questions, please contact Jamila Blake, TWS professional development manager.

The USFS is a Premier Partner of TWS.

San Francisco Bay Chapter hosts career development workshop

November 5, 2020 by The Wildlife Society

Join the San Francisco Bay Chapter of The Wildlife Society on Nov. 9 and 16 in its first virtual workshop — Environmental Career Development. This career development workshop is applicable to anyone in any stage of their career. The program will be led by three experts in their respective fields, including two women who co-founded a coaching business (The Every Person, LLC), where they provide a launch pad for busy professionals to accelerate their career goals and learn the right tools for networking and successfully navigating interviews. In addition, participants will hear tips and tricks from Lindsay Vivian, a leading environmental guru, who has held multiple roles at Caltrans including her current position as the Chief of the Environmental Analysis Branch. She will also go over her success and failures as well as tips for applying to state and governmental agencies. This workshop is being offered at a greatly reduced rate, so don’t miss out on these invaluable skills and career development tools (including a packet of excellent take-home information).

This workshop will be held on two consecutive Mondays — Nov. 9 and 16 from 6-8 p.m. PST on both evenings.

In addition, we are excited to announce some FREEBIES if you are one of the first 50 people to register for the virtual Environmental Career Development Workshop! We are offering the following incentives to two lucky, randomly selected individuals:

  • FREE Resume Package to ONE workshop attendee ($699 value)
  • Includes 1:1 consultation with Certified Resume Writer
  • Collaborative writing process to ensure your key accomplishments are captured
  • Full resume edit (content/formatting/alignment with your target jobs)
  • LinkedIn recommendations included
  • FREE SF Bay Area TWS Merchandise to ONE workshop attendee ($30-$50 value)

Workshop and registration details are available via the links below:

Flyer

Register

If you have any questions contact the Professional Development Chair Molly at tws.sf.workshops@gmail.com.

Scientists call for higher biodiversity goals

November 5, 2020 by The Wildlife Society

The world needs to change its strategy for stopping biodiversity loss, a group of scientists from around the world writes in a recent paper published in Science. The 40 scientists who authored the paper say that when planning for biodiversity for the next generation, goals need to aim higher in order to stop biodiversity loss and other worsening trends, like climate warming. They stress the need for a set of actions for new biodiversity goals that are clear, sufficiently ambitious and based on the best knowledge available.

“Building a sufficiently ambitious ‘safety net’ for nature will be a major global challenge,” said Sandra Díaz, the article’s lead author and a senior researcher at Argentina’s national research council, CONICET. “But unless we do it, we are leaving huge problems for every future generation.”

The research came after the intergovernmental Convention on Biological Diversity announced that none of its biodiversity targets set in 2010 will be achieved by this year’s deadline.

To come up with their recommendations, the researchers looked at different proposals by different nation’s delegates who are working on the Convention on Biological Diversity’s goals for 2050.

Read the study in Science.