Naturally occurring etiologic factors affecting the health of breeding seabirds in the Bering Sea
Dissertation (Ph.D) University of Alaska Fairbanks, 2021 Seabird populations across the globe have experienced both significant instability and consistent overall declines in recent history. Seabirds in the Bering Sea of Alaska, USA appear to be severely affected by environmental changes, exhibiting...
Main Author: | |
---|---|
Other Authors: | , , , , |
Format: | Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis |
Language: | English |
Published: |
2021
|
Subjects: | |
Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/11122/12990 |
id |
ftunivalaska:oai:scholarworks.alaska.edu:11122/12990 |
---|---|
record_format |
openpolar |
spelling |
ftunivalaska:oai:scholarworks.alaska.edu:11122/12990 2023-05-15T15:43:11+02:00 Naturally occurring etiologic factors affecting the health of breeding seabirds in the Bering Sea Branson, Maile Winker, Kevin Bortz, Eric Causey, Douglas Murphy, Molly Chen, Jack 2021-12 http://hdl.handle.net/11122/12990 en_US eng http://hdl.handle.net/11122/12990 Department of Biology and Wildlife Sea bird populations Diseases Bering Sea Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge Health Sea birds Avian influenza A virus Fulmarus glacialis Paralytic shellfish poisoning Doctor of Philosophy in Biological Sciences Dissertation phd 2021 ftunivalaska 2023-02-23T21:38:02Z Dissertation (Ph.D) University of Alaska Fairbanks, 2021 Seabird populations across the globe have experienced both significant instability and consistent overall declines in recent history. Seabirds in the Bering Sea of Alaska, USA appear to be severely affected by environmental changes, exhibiting large-scale shifts in behavior and distribution and increases in unusual mortality events (UMEs) in recent years. I analyze a selection of the naturally occurring pathogenic and toxicological factors affecting breeding seabirds in the Bering Sea region using an approach focusing on zoonoses and bioaccumulating toxins. Specimens were collected at three breeding colonies in the Bering Sea in 2018 and 2019, and were evaluated for the presence of several pathogens and toxins. First, I examined the frequency of Influenza A Virus (IAV) in several understudied clades of seabird host species (n=146 individuals) across the Bering Sea. Second, I used a novel set of genetic amplification and sequencing techniques for metagenomic analysis both to determine the respiratory microbiome and to detect the presence of potentially pathogenic microorganisms in northern fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis) on St. Matthew and Hall islands (n = 15). Finally, I sought to evaluate the levels of paralytic shellfish toxins (PSTs) in the digestive tracts of northern fulmars from St. Matthew and Hall islands (n = 14). Together, these studies detected several viral and bacterial pathogens, many with zoonotic potential. These included Coxiella, Plasmodium, Toxoplasma, and IAV. PSTs were also detected in birds sampled from 2019, indicating the presence of harmful algae in the Beringian food web. The detection of these etiologic factors along with the incidence of major morbidity and mortality events suggest these birds might serve as sentinel species, indicating variations in environmental change that can pose a significant risk to both ecological stability and human health in the region. National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National ... Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis Bering Sea Fulmarus glacialis Alaska University of Alaska: ScholarWorks@UA Bering Sea Fairbanks Hall Islands ENVELOPE(-85.299,-85.299,66.351,66.351) |
institution |
Open Polar |
collection |
University of Alaska: ScholarWorks@UA |
op_collection_id |
ftunivalaska |
language |
English |
topic |
Sea bird populations Diseases Bering Sea Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge Health Sea birds Avian influenza A virus Fulmarus glacialis Paralytic shellfish poisoning Doctor of Philosophy in Biological Sciences |
spellingShingle |
Sea bird populations Diseases Bering Sea Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge Health Sea birds Avian influenza A virus Fulmarus glacialis Paralytic shellfish poisoning Doctor of Philosophy in Biological Sciences Branson, Maile Naturally occurring etiologic factors affecting the health of breeding seabirds in the Bering Sea |
topic_facet |
Sea bird populations Diseases Bering Sea Alaska Maritime National Wildlife Refuge Health Sea birds Avian influenza A virus Fulmarus glacialis Paralytic shellfish poisoning Doctor of Philosophy in Biological Sciences |
description |
Dissertation (Ph.D) University of Alaska Fairbanks, 2021 Seabird populations across the globe have experienced both significant instability and consistent overall declines in recent history. Seabirds in the Bering Sea of Alaska, USA appear to be severely affected by environmental changes, exhibiting large-scale shifts in behavior and distribution and increases in unusual mortality events (UMEs) in recent years. I analyze a selection of the naturally occurring pathogenic and toxicological factors affecting breeding seabirds in the Bering Sea region using an approach focusing on zoonoses and bioaccumulating toxins. Specimens were collected at three breeding colonies in the Bering Sea in 2018 and 2019, and were evaluated for the presence of several pathogens and toxins. First, I examined the frequency of Influenza A Virus (IAV) in several understudied clades of seabird host species (n=146 individuals) across the Bering Sea. Second, I used a novel set of genetic amplification and sequencing techniques for metagenomic analysis both to determine the respiratory microbiome and to detect the presence of potentially pathogenic microorganisms in northern fulmars (Fulmarus glacialis) on St. Matthew and Hall islands (n = 15). Finally, I sought to evaluate the levels of paralytic shellfish toxins (PSTs) in the digestive tracts of northern fulmars from St. Matthew and Hall islands (n = 14). Together, these studies detected several viral and bacterial pathogens, many with zoonotic potential. These included Coxiella, Plasmodium, Toxoplasma, and IAV. PSTs were also detected in birds sampled from 2019, indicating the presence of harmful algae in the Beringian food web. The detection of these etiologic factors along with the incidence of major morbidity and mortality events suggest these birds might serve as sentinel species, indicating variations in environmental change that can pose a significant risk to both ecological stability and human health in the region. National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the National ... |
author2 |
Winker, Kevin Bortz, Eric Causey, Douglas Murphy, Molly Chen, Jack |
format |
Doctoral or Postdoctoral Thesis |
author |
Branson, Maile |
author_facet |
Branson, Maile |
author_sort |
Branson, Maile |
title |
Naturally occurring etiologic factors affecting the health of breeding seabirds in the Bering Sea |
title_short |
Naturally occurring etiologic factors affecting the health of breeding seabirds in the Bering Sea |
title_full |
Naturally occurring etiologic factors affecting the health of breeding seabirds in the Bering Sea |
title_fullStr |
Naturally occurring etiologic factors affecting the health of breeding seabirds in the Bering Sea |
title_full_unstemmed |
Naturally occurring etiologic factors affecting the health of breeding seabirds in the Bering Sea |
title_sort |
naturally occurring etiologic factors affecting the health of breeding seabirds in the bering sea |
publishDate |
2021 |
url |
http://hdl.handle.net/11122/12990 |
long_lat |
ENVELOPE(-85.299,-85.299,66.351,66.351) |
geographic |
Bering Sea Fairbanks Hall Islands |
geographic_facet |
Bering Sea Fairbanks Hall Islands |
genre |
Bering Sea Fulmarus glacialis Alaska |
genre_facet |
Bering Sea Fulmarus glacialis Alaska |
op_relation |
http://hdl.handle.net/11122/12990 Department of Biology and Wildlife |
_version_ |
1766377234109562880 |