title: Avian hosts of West Nile virus in Puerto Rico.
abstract: West Nile virus (WNV) ecology in neotropical ecosystems is poorly understood, and vertebrate hosts responsible for infecting mosquitoes remain unidentified throughout the Caribbean Basin. After a period of intense WNV transmission among sentinel chickens near Ceiba, Puerto Rico, we measured abundance of resident birds and species-specific prevalence of WNV infection. Taking the product of these measures indicates the relative number of WNV infections by species. Greater Antillean grackle (Quiscalus niger) accounted for the most WNV infections among birds in our 100-km(2) study site. In urban habitats, the house sparrow (Passer domesticus) was frequently infected. Immature birds less than one year of age were more likely to have detectable WNV-reactive antibodies than older birds of the same species.
authors.affiliation: Arboviral Diseases Branch (ADB), Division of Vector-Borne Diseases (DVBD), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Fort Collins, Colorado 80521, USA. nkomar@cdc.gov
authors.forename: Nicholas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Komar
authors.forename: Kovi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bessoff
authors.forename: Annette
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Diaz
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Amador
authors.forename: Ginger
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Young
authors.forename: Rafael
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Seda
authors.forename: Taonex
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Perez
authors.forename: Elizabeth
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hunsperger
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000914:Antibodies, Viral / Q000097:blood; D001715:Bird Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000821:virology*; D001717:Birds; D004197:Disease Reservoirs; D015995:Prevalence; D011647:Puerto Rico / Q000453:epidemiology; D012741:Sexual Maturation; D013045:Species Specificity; D014901:West Nile Fever / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000662:veterinary* / Q000821:virology; D014902:West Nile virus / Q000302:isolation & purification*
chemical_list: D000914:Antibodies, Viral