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Wildlife

Wildlife poaching is feared to surge across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. The common denominator includes the loss of tourism in previously protected areas, due to COVID-19.

The Asian giant hornet has caused significant devastation in Japan to the European honeybee, which raises concerns in the US where growers depend on honeybees to pollinate many important food crops.

With the release of the series Tiger King on Netflix in March, there is renewed public interest in captive big cat ownership in the United States. Veterinarian Dr. Julie Sheldon, expert in zoological medicine, spoke with VPHPM resident Jim Kincheloe about this issue. 

Since its discovery in the state in 2015, Minnesota has struggled to control the devastating disease White-nose syndrome in bats. Biologists believe that the disease has killed more than 90% of bats in important hibernation spots in Minnesota. 

CAHFS is working with Peter Larsen, PhD, and his team of engineers on the urgent need to educate Minnesotans about CWD. And last month, CAHFS launched their fall 2019 emerging issues webpage, CWD Watch.

A bat found in downtown Minneapolis tested positive for rabies last week. According to the Minnesota Department of Health (MDH), a group of people found the bat at Marquette Avenue and 6th Street on Tuesday, September 10, around 1 p.m., and brought it to the University of Minnesota Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory while it was still alive. Rabies was confirmed two days later.

"We have a statutory obligation to manage wildlife for current and future generations. We strongly believe in that obligation, despite how difficult the challenge may appear," says Lou Cornicelli, wildlife research manager at the Minnesota DNR.

"CWD is a very complex puzzle, but it is a puzzle worth piecing together because of how many aspects of our lives it could affect," says Dr. Roxanne Larsen, assistant professor in the College of Veterinary Medicine.