Abstract
Wellfleet Bay virus (WFBV), a novel orthomyxovirus in the genus Quaranjavirus, was first isolated in 2006 from carcasses of common eider (Somateria mollissima) during a mortality event in Wellfleet Bay (Barnstable County, Massachusetts, USA) and has since been repeatedly isolated during recurrent mortality events in this location. Hepatic, pancreatic, splenic, and intestinal necrosis was observed in dead eiders. We inoculated 6-week-old common eider ducklings with WFBV in an attempt to recreate the naturally occurring disease. Approximately 25% of inoculated eiders had onset of clinical disease and required euthanasia; an additional 18.75% were adversely affected based on net weight loss during the trial. Control ducklings did not become infected and did not have clinical disease. Infected ducklings with clinical disease had pathologic lesions consistent with those observed during natural mortality events. WFBV was reisolated from 37.5% of the inoculated ducklings. Ducklings surviving to 5 days postinoculation developed serum antibody titers to WFBV.
Highlights
Wellfleet Bay virus (WFBV), a novel orthomyxovirus in the genus Quaranjavirus, was first isolated in 2006 from carcasses of common eider (Somateria mollissima) during a mortality event in Wellfleet Bay (Barnstable County, Massachusetts, USA) and has since been repeatedly isolated during recurrent mortality events in this location
This study determined the pathogenicity of WFBV, a novel orthomyxovirus in the genus Quaranjavirus, in common eiders by observing clinical progression and pathologic changes in experimentally inoculated eider ducklings over a 10day period
We were able to determine that WFBV causes a unique, characteristic, and reproducible disease in this host
Summary
Wellfleet Bay virus (WFBV), a novel orthomyxovirus in the genus Quaranjavirus, was first isolated in 2006 from carcasses of common eider (Somateria mollissima) during a mortality event in Wellfleet Bay (Barnstable County, Massachusetts, USA) and has since been repeatedly isolated during recurrent mortality events in this location. We inoculated 6-week-old common eider ducklings with WFBV in an attempt to recreate the naturally occurring disease. Infected ducklings with clinical disease had pathologic lesions consistent with those observed during natural mortality events. T he common eider (Somateria mollissima) is a large sea duck with a circumpolar distribution. Newfoundland, Canada, south to New York, USA, with large rafts of >100,000 eiders congregating annually in the open waters off Cape Cod, Massachusetts (1). The earliest record of death affecting a large number of eiders off Cape Cod occurred during September 1956–
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