Sixteen brown skuas (Catharacta antarctica lonnbergi) and seven South Polar skuas (C. maccormicki) were found dead near Boekella Lake, Hope Bay, Antarctica, in February 1997. Postmortem examination revealed conspicuous caseous, deep yellow fungal/mycelial mats or cores in the trachea of nine of 19 carcasses that were examined. These mycelial cores, highly suggestive of aspergillomas, completely occluded the tracheal lumen in four of these nine carcasses. Thelebolus microsporus, a psychrophilic ascomycetous fungus commonly isolated from skua dung and skua nesting material, was isolated in pure culture from these tracheal plugs. Awareness of pseudolesions resulting from Thelebolus microsporus profuse postmortem growth in the trachea of dead skuas will minimize potential confusion with aspergillosis when investigating causes of epornithics in Antarctica.
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April 01 2002
Thelebolus microsporus Mycelial Mats in the Trachea of Wild Brown Skua (Catharacta antarctica lonnbergi) and South Polar Skua (C. maccormicki) Carcasses
Gerardo A. Leotta;
Gerardo A. Leotta
1 Cátedra de Micología Médica e Industrial, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Calle 118 y 60, La Plata (1900), Pcia. de Buenos Aires, Argentina, CC 296
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Jean A. Paré;
Jean A. Paré
7
2 Department of Surgical Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin, 2015 Linden Drive West, Madison, Wisconsin 53706, USA
7 Corresponding author (email: PareJ@svm.vetmed. wisc.edu).
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Lynne Sigler;
Lynne Sigler
3 University of Alberta Microfungus Collection & Herbarium, Devonian Botanic Garden, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada T6G 2E1
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Diego Montalti;
Diego Montalti
4 Dirección Nacional del Antártico, Cerrito N° 1248, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Germán Vigo;
Germán Vigo
5 Laboratorio de Investigaciones y Diagnóstico Bacteriológico, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Calle 118 y 60, La Plata (1900), Pcia. de Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Miguel Petruccelli;
Miguel Petruccelli
6 Cátedra de Patología de Aves y Pilíferos, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Calle 118 y 60, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, La Plata (1900), Pcia. de Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Enso H. Reinoso
Enso H. Reinoso
1 Cátedra de Micología Médica e Industrial, Facultad de Ciencias Veterinarias, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Calle 118 y 60, La Plata (1900), Pcia. de Buenos Aires, Argentina, CC 296
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J Wildl Dis (2002) 38 (2): 443–447.
Article history
Received:
February 26 2001
Citation
Gerardo A. Leotta, Jean A. Paré, Lynne Sigler, Diego Montalti, Germán Vigo, Miguel Petruccelli, Enso H. Reinoso; Thelebolus microsporus Mycelial Mats in the Trachea of Wild Brown Skua (Catharacta antarctica lonnbergi) and South Polar Skua (C. maccormicki) Carcasses. J Wildl Dis 1 April 2002; 38 (2): 443–447. doi: https://doi.org/10.7589/0090-3558-38.2.443
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