Thursday, January 24, 2013
Kiwi Research To Prevent And Treat Disease
New research by a Wildbase Hospital veterinarian will help combat the parasitic disease coccidiosis that affects kiwi in
captivity.
This comes as Wildbase announces a major ten-year partnership with Shell New Zealand that will significantly improve
conservation outcomes for New Zealand.
Massey University wildlife veterinarian Kerri Morgan has learned valuable information about the parasite’s biology and
how it interacts with kiwi that will now directly affect the conservation management of the species.
The parasite infects the gastrointestinal and renal system and can result in death.
“We see and treat quite a few cases of coccidiosis at Wildbase and we recognised it was a major health problem in the
conservation management of kiwi,” Ms Morgan says.
Coccidiosis was first recorded in kiwi in 1978 but little was known about it despite it being the most prevalent disease
in kiwi in captivity – with knowledge extrapolated from what was known about coccidiosis in chickens.
“The point of the research was to create knowledge of the parasite and its life cycle within the kiwi host, so we can
give advice on husbandry and the management of the disease in captivity,” she says.
Kiwi numbers in the wild continue to decline – with less than five per cent of wild kiwi chicks in non-managed sites
reaching adulthood – so hatching and rearing kiwi in captivity away from predators is pivotal for their long-term
survival. But as part of conservation strategies such as Operation Nest Egg, young kiwi are often held together in high
numbers and this increases the risk of them coming into contact with the parasite and becoming ill.
For her doctoral research Ms Morgan examined tissue samples from dead kiwi, as well as parasitic life stages shed in
faeces of hospitalised kiwi treated at Wildbase hospital. Faecal samples from wild and captive kiwi were sent from
conservation workers around New Zealand.
She identified coccidiosis in four of the five species of kiwi, including brown, rowi, great spotted and Haast tokoeka,
and examined risk factors to determine which kiwi are most prone to the disease. Recovery of DNA from the parasites has
enabled determination of the family of coccidia which affect kiwi, and further results are pending which will hopefully
shed some light on the different species.
Her research shows the disease behaves very differently in kiwi than chickens, and this information will be used to
provide advice to conservation workers managing this disease in captive reared kiwi.
Wildbase director Brett Gartrell says the research is an excellent example of how health problems affecting the
conservation of native species can be identified through clinical cases admitted to Wildbase.
“Kerri has been able to engage the research capabilities of Massey University to apply cutting edge scientific methods
to this health problem and come up with practical solutions that directly affect the conservation management of the
species.”
Dr Gartrell says for the past decade Massey’s Wildbase team has provided veterinary services to native species
conservation in New Zealand, treating more than 1800 native animals, half of which come from threatened or endangered
species, but they now needed help to do more.
“Our caseload, staffing levels and contributions to conservation has grown annually, but the physical space we work in
has not. The Wildbase hospital consists of three small rooms, which are used to hospitalise patients, carry out
treatments and do food preparation and orthopaedic surgery. The physical size of the hospital is now limiting both the
quality of care and the caseload we can provide.”
“We are currently fundraising to build an expanded Wildbase Hospital, that will directly raise our capability to provide
veterinary services for conservation of native wildlife in New Zealand.”
Dr Gartrell is proud to announce Shell New Zealand has made a founding contribution of $400,000 and and has committed to
providing annual support for clinical services for the next ten years.
Shell New Zealand has supported the centre since its inception in 2001 and has seen the significant benefits of the work
to the management of endangered species. “We are proud to partner and support Wildbase and its dedicated team who are
the unsung heroes of New Zealand conservation,” says Shell New Zealand chairman Rob Jager.
“We’ve been working Wildbase for over ten years now and we’re excited about this new chapter, and the new hospital,
which will enable staff to treat more animals and give them the best possible care and rehabilitation.
“Shell sees real value in promoting and supporting the things that are important to all New Zealanders. Looking after
our threatened species so that they can thrive is critical to maintaining a healthy natural environment we can all
enjoy.”
Massey University will contribute a quarter of the $1.47m the new hospital will cost. Public donations can be made to: https://alumnionline.massey.ac.nz/NetCommunity/SSLPage.aspx?pid=376
Background information:
The new Wildbase hospital will expand from 25m/sq to 250m/sq and will allow Wildbase to treat more animals to a much
higher standard.
It will contain:
• Five wards that will allow Wildbase to treat more birds, and to hold them in better, climate-controlled
conditions.
• A dedicated sterile surgical facility that will reduce the risk of infection and improve outcomes
• An air filtration system that will remove airborne bacteria and reduce the risk of infection and surgical
complications
• An intensive care unit that will greatly reduce patients’ exposure to noise and light and give enhanced
monitoring of sick and injured animals
• Increased space for teaching with the ability for large numbers of students to view operations and learn best
practice
• Separate food preparation areas with space to manage live insect growth
• Public viewing areas including a seabird pool which will be open to the public to view from the outside of the
building
Captions: Wildlife veterinarian Kerri Morgan with a kiwi being treated at Wildbase. Associate Professor Brett Gartrell
and Shell New Zealand chairman Rob Jager with a kiwi at Wildbase Hospital.
ENDS