Scientists gear up to fight deadly snake fungal disease

Date:

July 15, 2014

Source:

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Summary:

A faster and more accurate way to test for infection with Ophidiomyces ophiodiicola, a fungus that is killing snakes in the Midwest and eastern United States, has been devised by researchers. The test also allows scientists to monitor the progression of the infection in living snakes. Researchers first took notice of Ophidiomyces in snakes in the mid-2000s. Today the fungus threatens the last remaining eastern massasauga rattlesnake population in Illinois and has been found to infect timber rattlesnakes, mud snakes, rat snakes, garter snakes, milk snakes, water snakes and racers in several states.

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Zombie Bees Found in Eastern US

"Zombie bees" have now invaded eastern U.S., according to media sources.

Anthony Cantrell- a beekeeper in Burlington, Vermont discovered "zombie bees" in his hive in October, according to the Associated Press. This is the first report of 'parasitized' honey bees being found in eastern U.S.

The zombie bees aren't half-dead bees and they certainly don't roam the earth forever. These bees suffer from a parasitic infection that disrupts their neurological functions, leading to strange, "zombie-like" movements. The honey bees die within a few days. "Right now, we don't know if it's an isolated thing," Stephen Parise, Vermont agricultural production specialist, said Tuesday at the state's annual farm show, Associated Press reported.

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