Volume 15, Number 12—December 2009
Letter
Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus in Marine Mammals
Meredith C. Faires, Erica Gehring, June Mergl, and J. Scott Weese
Table
MRSA colonization status of dolphins and walruses during 2007–2008*
| Date | No. (%) dolphins MRSA positive | Identification nos. of MRSA-positive dolphins | No. (%) walruses MRSA positive | Identification nos. of MRSA-positive walruses |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 Jan | 2/6 (33.3) | 2, 3 | 1/6 (16.7) | 1 |
| 2007 Feb | 2/6 (33.3) | 2, 4 | 2/5 (40) | 2, 3 |
| 2007 Apr | 2/5† (40) | 3, 5 | 0/6 (0) | NA |
| 2007 May | 2/3 (66.7) | 3, 5 | 0/6 | NA |
| 2007 Oct | 1/5 (20) | 3 | 0/5 | NA |
| 2008 May | 1/5 (20) | 3 | NT | NA |
| 2008 Jul | 0/5 | NA | NT | NA |
| 2008 Oct | 0/5 | NA | NT | NA |
*MRSA, methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus; NA, not applicable; NT, not tested.
†Dolphin 2 died due to unknown circumstances.
