| mosquito isolates of ross river virus from cairns, queensland, australia. | during 1996-1998 60,619 mosquitoes were collected around cairns, australia and processed for alphavirus isolation. thirty-three isolates of ross river (rr) virus were made from 9 species, aedes imprimens, aedes kochi, aedes notoscriptus, aedes vigilax, culex annulirostris, culex gelidus, mansonia septempunctata, verrallina (formerly aedes) carmenti, and verrallina lineatus. attempts to isolate rr virus from 121 aedes aegypti were unsuccessful. twenty-six (79%) of the isolates came from within 1 ... | 2000 | 11289664 |
| effects of the paralysis tick, ixodes holocyclus, on the electrocardiogram of the spectacled flying fox, pteropus conspicillatus. | to evaluate cardiac electrical function in the spectacled flying fox (bat) infested with ixodes holocyclus. | 2003 | 15080451 |
| flying foxes as carriers of pathogenic leptospira species. | recent serologic studies have identified flying foxes (pteropus spp.) as carriers of leptospirosis; however, little is known about the role of flying foxes as carriers of pathogenic leptospira spp. to determine if australian pteropus spp. are carriers of pathogenic leptospira spp., taqman real-time polymerase chain reaction (pcr) was used to detect leptospiral dna in kidney and urine specimens from four species of flying fox, including the spectacled flying fox (pteropus conspicillatus), black f ... | 2005 | 16456164 |
| development and evaluation of real-time polymerase chain reaction assays to identify mosquito (diptera: culicidae) bloodmeals originating from native australian mammals. | real-time taqman polymerase chain reaction (pcr) assays were developed for the identification of mosquito (diptera: culicidae) bloodmeals originating from three groups of native australian mammals. primers and probes were designed to amplify a partial fragment of the cytochrome b gene of the agile wallaby, macropus agilis (gould); brushtail possum, trichosurus vulpecula (kerr); and the consensus sequence of the four species of australian flying fox: pteropus alecto temminck, pteropus conspicilla ... | 2007 | 17294925 |
| the role of fruit bats in the transmission of pathogenic leptospires in australia. | although antileptospiral antibodies and leptospiral dna have been detected in australian fruit bats, the role of such bats as infectious hosts for the leptospires found in rodents and humans remains unconfirmed. a cohort-design, replicated survey was recently conducted in far north queensland, australia, to determine if the abundance and leptospiral status of rodents were affected by association with colonies of fruit bats (pteropus conspicillatus spp.) via rodent contact with potentially infect ... | 2011 | 21294951 |
| maximizing the chances of detecting pathogenic leptospires in mammals: the evaluation of field samples and a multi-sample-per-mammal, multi-test approach. | identification of wild animals that harbour the causative leptospires, and the identification of the most important of these 'wild reservoirs' (in terms of threat to human health), are key factors in the epidemiology of human leptospirosis. in an epidemiological investigation in the australian state of queensland, in 2007-2008, samples were collected from fruit bats (pteropus conspicillatus) and rodents (to investigate the potential role of fruit bats in the maintenance and transmission of lepto ... | 2011 | 21396251 |
| megachiropteran bats (pteropus) utilize human referential stimuli to locate hidden food. | spontaneous point-following behavior has been considered an indicator of advanced social cognition unique to humans. recently, it has been suggested that a close evolutionary relationship with humans could result in similar social skills in domesticated species. an alternative view is that the mechanism is not genetic domestication alone but instead a combination of phylogenetic and ontogenetic variables. here we test the necessity of phylogenetic domestication by investigating the point-followi ... | 2011 | 21842983 |
| Evidence of Endemic Hendra Virus Infection in Flying-Foxes (Pteropus conspicillatus)-Implications for Disease Risk Management. | This study investigated the seroepidemiology of Hendra virus in a spectacled flying-fox (Pteropus conspicillatus) population in northern Australia, near the location of an equine and associated human Hendra virus infection in late 2004. The pattern of infection in the population was investigated using a serial cross-sectional serological study over a 25-month period, with blood sampled from 521 individuals over six sampling sessions. Antibody titres to the virus were determined by virus neutrali ... | 2011 | 22194920 |
| tick paralysis in spectacled flying-foxes (pteropus conspicillatus) in north queensland, australia: impact of a ground-dwelling ectoparasite finding an arboreal host. | when a parasite finds a new wildlife host, impacts can be significant. in the late 1980s populations of spectacled flying-foxes (sff) (pteropus conspicillatus), a species confined, in australia, to north queensland became infected by paralysis tick (ixodes holocyclus), resulting in mortality. this pteropus-tick relationship was new to australia. curiously, the relationship was confined to several camps on the atherton tableland, north queensland. it was hypothesised that an introduced plant, wil ... | 2013 | 24066028 |
| measuring physiological stress in australian flying-fox populations. | flying-foxes (pteropid bats) are the natural host of hendra virus, a recently emerged zoonotic virus responsible for mortality or morbidity in horses and humans in australia since 1994. previous studies have suggested physiological and ecological risk factors for infection in flying-foxes, including physiological stress. however, little work has been done measuring and interpreting stress hormones in flying-foxes. over a 12-month period, we collected pooled urine samples from underneath roosting ... | 2014 | 24990534 |
| systemic toxoplasmosis in captive flying-foxes. | systemic toxoplasmosis caused by toxoplasma gondii was diagnosed in two juvenile, captive flying-foxes (pteropus conspicillatus and p. scapulatus), which died following respiratory distress. one animal displayed clinical signs suggestive of neurological disease. this is the first report of this disease in megachiropteran bats and adds to the list of differential diagnoses for both systemic and neurological disease in these animals. the role of captivity in the exposure and development of the dis ... | 2012 | 22443329 |
| physiological stress and hendra virus in flying-foxes (pteropus spp.), australia. | pteropid bats (flying-foxes) are the natural reservoir of hendra virus, an emergent paramyxovirus responsible for fatal infection in horses and humans in australia. pteropus alecto (the black flying-fox) and the paraphyletic p. conspicillatus (the spectacled flying-fox) appear to be the primary reservoir hosts. previous studies have suggested that physiological and ecological factors may underpin infection dynamics in flying-foxes, and subsequent spillover to horses and in turn humans. we sought ... | 2017 | 28767708 |
| novel paramyxoviruses in australian flying-fox populations support host-virus co-evolution. | understanding the diversity of henipaviruses and related viruses is important in determining the viral ecology within flying-fox populations and assessing the potential threat posed by these agents. this study sought to identify the abundance and diversity of previously unknown paramyxoviruses (upvs) in australian flying-fox species (pteropus alecto, pteropus scapulatus, pteropus poliocephalus and pteropus conspicillatus) and in the christmas island species pteropus melanotus natalis. using a de ... | 2015 | 25701824 |
| are flying-foxes coming to town? urbanisation of the spectacled flying-fox (pteropus conspicillatus) in australia. | urbanisation of wildlife populations is a process with significant conservation and management implications. while urban areas can provide habitat for wildlife, some urbanised species eventually come into conflict with humans. understanding the process and drivers of wildlife urbanisation is fundamental to developing effective management responses to this phenomenon. in australia, flying-foxes (pteropodidae) are a common feature of urban environments, sometimes roosting in groups of tens of thou ... | 2014 | 25295724 |
| assessment of monitoring power for highly mobile vertebrates. | monitoring of population trends is a critical component of conservation management, and development of practical methods remains a priority, particularly for species that challenge more standard approaches. we used field-parameterized simulation models to examine the effects of different errors on monitoring power and compared alternative methods used with two species of threatened pteropodids (flying-foxes), pteropus conspicillatus and p. poliocephalus, whose mobility violates assumptions of cl ... | 2012 | 22471097 |
| bryophyte dispersal by flying foxes: a novel discovery. | this research provides the first evidence of dispersal of bryophytes and associated microorganisms through ingestion by a highly mobile vertebrate vector, the spectacled flying fox (pteropus conspicillatus). bryophyte fragments were found in faeces collected at four p. conspicillatus' camps in the wet tropics bioregion, northeastern australia. these fragments were viable when grown in culture; live invertebrates and other organisms were also present. our study has significantly increased underst ... | 2007 | 17216209 |
| a state-space modelling approach to wildlife monitoring with application to flying-fox abundance. | monitoring flying-foxes is challenging as their extreme mobility produces highly dynamic population processes, considerable logistic difficulty, and variability in estimated population size. we report on methods for inferring population trend for the population of the spectacled flying-fox (pteropus conspicillatus) in australia. monthly monitoring is conducted at all known roost sites across the species' range in the wet tropics region. the proportion of animals in camps varies seasonally and st ... | 2018 | 29511249 |
| hematology and plasma biochemistry of wild spectacled flying foxes ( pteropus conspicillatus) in australia. | the spectacled flying fox ( pteropus conspicillatus) is listed as vulnerable to extinction in australia. the species' restricted population is in decline, putatively attributed to decreasing habitat, climatic extremes, anthropogenic activities, and more recently, mass mortality events associated with tick paralysis and neonatal cleft palate syndrome. knowledge of fundamental physiologic parameters of the species is limited. to address this knowledge gap, we sampled 50 wild-caught adult spectacle ... | 2019 | 30325258 |
| unmasking the complexity of species identification in australasian flying-foxes. | pteropus (flying-foxes) are a speciose group of non-echolocating large bats, with five extant australian species and 24 additional species distributed amongst the pacific islands. in 2015, an injured flying-fox with unusual facial markings was found in sydney, australia, following severe and widespread storms. based on an initial assessment, the individual belonged to pteropus but could not be readily identified to species. as a consequence, four hypotheses for its identification/origin were pos ... | 2018 | 29634748 |
| using weather radar to monitor the number, timing and directions of flying-foxes emerging from their roosts. | knowledge of species' population trends is crucial when planning for conservation and management; however, this information can be difficult to obtain for extremely mobile species such as flying-foxes (pteropus spp.; chiroptera, pteropodidae). in mainland australia, flying-foxes are of particular management concern due their involvement in human-wildlife conflict, and their role as vectors of zoonotic diseases; and two species, the grey-headed flying-fox (pteropus poliocephalus) and the spectacl ... | 2019 | 31308411 |
| an unprecedented cluster of australian bat lyssavirus in pteropus conspicillatus indicates pre-flight flying fox pups are at risk of mass infection. | in november 2017, two groups of p. conspicillatus pups from separate locations in far north queensland presented with neurological signs consistent with australian bat lyssavirus (ablv) infection. these pups (n = 11) died over an 11-day period and were submitted to a government laboratory for testing where ablv infection was confirmed. over the next several weeks, additional ablv cases in flying foxes in queensland were also detected. brain tissue from ablv-infected flying foxes during this peri ... | 2020 | 32311218 |