SGER: Behavioral Factors in the Transmission of West Nile Virus in American Crows

提案0331703安妮B。克拉克，私家侦探。 西尼罗河病毒在美国乌鸦（Corvus brachyrhynchos）中传播的行为因素疾病是一种未被充分认识但对行为进化，特别是社会行为的重要选择压力。这项研究利用了一个难得的机会来研究野生动物的社会行为可能有助于感染和传播一种新入侵疾病西尼罗河病毒（WNV）的风险。西尼罗河病毒不仅威胁人类，而且威胁许多其他物种，包括濒危种群。 家庭群体生活的美国乌鸦（Corvus brachyrhynchos）特别易感，实验室研究表明，它们复杂的社会行为和密切的家庭关系可能与它们如何感染和传播疾病有关。2002年，西尼罗河病毒首次出现在一个独特的乌鸦群体中，研究了14年。在2003年期间，这项研究将跟踪这些乌鸦的个体行为和疾病，以评估在大型夏季栖息地度过的时间对蚊子传播的作用，以及由于亲社会行为，包括父母照顾后代，家庭成员之间的梳理，特别是乌鸦明显倾向于照顾或喂养生病的群体成员，在家庭内直接传播的重要性。 通过调查社会行为在流行病学上重要疾病传播中的作用，该项目将有助于理解疾病作为动物社会行为的选择压力以及野生动物和人类传播西尼罗河病毒的风险因素。

Proposal 0331703 Anne B. Clark, PI. BEHAVIORAL FACTORS IN THE TRANSMISSION OF WEST NILE VIRUS IN AMERICAN CROWS (Corvus brachyrhynchos) Disease is an under-appreciated but important selection pressure on the evolution of behavior, particularly social behavior. This study takes advantage of a rare opportunity to study the way in which the social behavior of wild animals may contribute to the risks of contracting and transmitting a newly invading disease, West Nile Virus (WNV). WNV threatens not only humans, but also many other species, including endangered populations. Family group-living American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) are especially susceptible and laboratory studies suggest that their complex social behavior and close family relationships may be involved in how they contract and transmit the disease. In 2002, WNV first appeared in a unique marked population of crows studied over 14 years. During 2003, this study will follow individual behavior and illness in these crows to evaluate both the role of time spent in large summer roosts to mosquito transmission and the importance of direct transmission within families due to pro-social behaviors, including parental care of offspring, preening among family members and especially crows' apparent tendency to attend or feed sick group members. By investigating the role of social behavior in the spread of an epidemiologically important disease, this project will contribute to the understanding both of disease as a selection pressure on social behavior in animals and of the risks factors for WNV transmission in wildlife and humans.