Global dissemination of Influenza A virus is driven by wild bird migration through arctic and subarctic zones ...

• Main Author: Gass, Jonathon
• Format: Dataset
• Language: English
• Published: Dryad 2021
• Subjects: Influenza A virus; Iceland; wild birds; Phylodynamics; transmission; Subarctic; Ecology; FOS Biological sciences; Arctic; North Atlantic
• Online Access: https://dx.doi.org/10.5061/dryad.m37pvmd2m; https://datadryad.org/stash/dataset/doi:10.5061/dryad.m37pvmd2m

Influenza A viruses (IAV) circulate endemically among many wild aquatic bird populations that seasonally migrate between wintering grounds in southern latitudes to breeding ranges along the perimeter of the circumpolar arctic. Arctic and subarctic zones are hypothesized to serve as ecologic drivers of the intercontinental movement and reassortment of IAVs due to high densities of disparate populations of long distance migratory and native bird species present during breeding seasons. Iceland is a staging ground that connects the East Atlantic and North Atlantic American flyways, providing a unique study system for characterizing viral flow between eastern and western hemispheres. Using Bayesian phylodynamic analyses, we sought to evaluate the viral connectivity of Iceland to proximal regions and how inter-species transmission and reassortment dynamics in this region influence the geographic spread of low and highly pathogenic IAVs. Findings demonstrate that IAV movement in the arctic and subarctic follows ... : Field sample collection From May 2010 through February 2018, we obtained IAV isolates from various species of seabirds, shorebirds, and waterfowl as well as environmental sampling of avian fecal material from locations throughout Iceland (capture and swab data can be found here: https://doi.org/10.5066/XX (Dusek et al. 202X)). Live sampled birds were captured using a 18m x 12m cannon-propelled capture net, noose pole, or hand capture. Birds found dead or moribund were also sampled. Hunter-harvested waterfowl and fisheries-bycatch seabirds were sampled as available. All birds were identified to species and, for live birds, individually marked with metal bands. Age characteristics were determined and age was documented for each bird according to the following schemes adapted from U.S. Geological Survey year classification codes: hatched in same calendar year as sampling (1CY), hatched previous calendar year (2CY), hatched previous calendar year or older, exact age unknown (2CY+), hatched three calendar years ...