Desert bighorn sheep mortality due to presumptive type C botulism in California
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Abstract
During a routine telemetry flight of the Mojave Desert (California, USA) in August 1995, mortality signals were detected from two of 12 radio-collared female desert bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis) in the vicinity of Old Dad Peak in San Bernardino County (California). A series of field investigations determined that at least 45 bighorn sheep had died near two artificial water catchments (guzzlers), including 13 bighorn sheep which had presumably drowned in a guzzler tank. Samples from water contaminated by decomposing bighorn sheep carcasses and hemolyzed blood from a fresh bighorn sheep carcass were tested for the presence of pesticides, heavy metals, strychnine, blue-green algae, Clostridium botulinum toxin, ethylene glycol, nitrates, nitrites, sodium, and salts. Mouse bioassay and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay detected type C botulinum toxin in the hemolyzed blood and in fly larvae and pupae. This, coupled with negative results from other analyses, led us to conclude that type C botulinum poisoning was most likely responsible for the mortality of bighorn sheep outside the guzzler tank.
Study Area
| Publication type | Article |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Journal Article |
| Title | Desert bighorn sheep mortality due to presumptive type C botulism in California |
| Series title | Journal of Wildlife Diseases |
| DOI | 10.7589/0090-3558-36.1.184 |
| Volume | 36 |
| Issue | 1 |
| Year Published | 2000 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | Wildlife Disease Association |
| Contributing office(s) | National Wildlife Health Center |
| Description | 6 p. |
| First page | 184 |
| Last page | 189 |
| Country | United States |
| State | California |
| County | San Bernardino County |
| Other Geospatial | Old Dad Peak |
| Online Only (Y/N) | N |
| Additional Online Files (Y/N) | N |
| Google Analytic Metrics | Metrics page |