Infectious bursal disease virus and antarctic birds

Abstract

The geographic isolation of the Antarctic continent coupled with the extreme climate has historically been assumed to protect the indigenous Antarctic wildlife from exposure to infectious agents found among animals in more temperate regions. However, with the number of tourists visiting the region more than doubling in the last 10 years (IAATO 2004) and climate change predicted to enhance the success of alien micro-organisms (Frenot et al. 2005), the threat of introduced disease to Antarctic wildlife has become a concern (Kerry and Clarke 1995; Kerry et al. 1999). Emergence of disease in naïve bird populations can reduce both population abundance and geographical distribution (Friend et al. 2001).