A virulent nuclear polyhedrosis virus of the cabbage looper, Trichoplusia ni, recovered from the abdomens of sarcophagid flies

Abstract

During an epizootic of a nuclear-polyhedrosis virus (NPV) disease in larvae of the sawfly Gilpinia hercyniae in Wales, 16 species of birds belonging to six families were found to disperse infective NPV in their feces. This represents 80% of the total bird number. Ninety percent of droppings collected directly from trees in September contained infective virus. Information on the species composition of the bird fauna in the spruce forest study area and the comparative frequencies of different bird species are given.