Volume 10, Number 12—December 2004
Research
VecTest as Diagnostic and Surveillance Tool for West Nile Virus in Dead Birds
Ward B. Stone*
, Joseph C. Okoniewski*, Joseph E. Therrien*, Laura D. Kramer†, Elizabeth B. Kauffman†, and Millicent Eidson†
, Joseph C. Okoniewski*, Joseph E. Therrien*, Laura D. Kramer†, Elizabeth B. Kauffman†, and Millicent Eidson†
Table 1
Comparison of oral VecTest and RT-PCR resultsa,b for West Nile virus in dead birds, New York State, April 2003– July 2004
| No. of birds |
||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| VecTest resultsc |
||||
| Species (listed by order) | No. birds tested | RT-PCR–positive | True positive (%)d | False-positive (%)e |
| Ciconiiformes | ||||
| Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Anseriformes | ||||
| Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos) | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Falconiformes | ||||
| Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus) | 14 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Cooper’s Hawk (Accipiter cooperii) | 33 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Broad-winged Hawk (Buteo platypterus) | 1 | 1 | 1 | NA |
| Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) | 36 | 11 | 0 (0) | 0 |
| American Kestrel (Falco sparverius) | 12 | 4 | 3 | 0 |
| Merlin (Falco columbarius) | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus) | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Galliformes | ||||
| Impeyan Pheasant (Lophophorus impeyanus) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Charadriiformes | ||||
| Herring Gull (Larus argentatus) | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Great Black-backed Gull (Larus marinus) | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Columbiformes | ||||
| Mourning Dove (Zenaida macroura) | 75 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| Strigiformes | ||||
| Great Horned Owl (Bubo virginianus) | 25 | 12 | 0 (0) | 1 |
| Passeriformes | ||||
| Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) | 339 | 166 | 133 (80) | 1 (1) |
| American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) | 1,076 | 702 | 608 (87) | 7 (2) |
| Fish Crow (Corvus ossifragus) | 22 | 10 | 2 (20) | 0 |
| Common Raven (Corvus corax) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| American Robin (Turdus migratorius) | 233 | 16 | 3 (19) | 1 (1) |
| Gray Catbird (Dumatella carolinensis) | 113 | 2 | 0 | 13 (12) |
| Brown Thrasher (Toxostoma rufum) | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris) | 85 | 1 | 1 | 1 (1) |
| Scarlet Tanager (Piranga olivacea) | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Northern Cardinal (Cardinalis cardinalis) | 21 | 6 | 4 | 0 |
| Common Grackle (Quiscalus quiscula) | 189 | 6 | 3 | 1 (1) |
| Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater) | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| House Finch (Carpodacus mexicanus) | 17 | 7 | 7 | 1 |
| House Sparrow (Passer domesticus) | 222 | 41 | 31 (76) | 1 (1) |
| Gouldian Finch (Chloebia gouldiae) | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Society Finch (Lonchura domestica) | 1 | 1 | 1 | NA |
| Other speciesf | 339 | 0 | NA | 8g (2) |
| Total all species | 2,913 | 1,013 | 799 (79) | 36 (2) |
aRT-PCR, reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction; NA, not available.
bPrincipally tests of kidney (brain or heart alternate when kidney missing).
cPercentages are provided for species where n > 10.
dNo. and percentage of RT-PCR–positive birds that were VecTest-positive.
eNo. and percentage of RT-PCR–negative birds that were VecTest-positive.
f84 species representing 16 orders.
gMute Swan (Cygnus olor) (1), Green Heron (Butorides virescens) (6), Northern Mockingbird (Mimus polyglottos) (1).
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