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Disease Investigations

Swan Sampling in Mongolia Photo
WCS field vets collect samples from a dead whooper swan in Mongolia to check the bird for avian influenza H5N1.
©William Karesh

Disease—whether driven by pathogens, pollutants, genetics, or dietary deficiencies—can threaten vulnerable wildlife populations as significantly as do overhunting and habitat destruction. Wildlife diseases may also affect humans, livestock, and the economy. Pinpointing a disease’s origin, how it develops, how it spreads, and how it can be stopped is essential to protecting wildlife and human communities.

On five continents, WCS-Global Health is conducting health monitoring and disease investigations. Their work is incredibly diverse, varying from health studies of gorillas in small pockets of remote jungle to migratory birds that travel across hemispheres. In the past few years, WCS health experts have been pivotal in proving that West Nile virus had spread into the U.S., investigating why thousands of penguins were washing ashore at the southern tip of South America, and examining why amphibians are declining all over the world.

WCS Projects

Bird Flu

WCS launched GAINS (the Global Avian Influenza Network for Surveillance)--the only global disease surveillance program that focuses on wildlife populations; all others focus primarily on diseases of humans and domestic livestock.

Ebola Hemorrhagic Fever Virus

Throughout Ebola high-risk zones, our researchers assess great ape health and improve Ebola prevention awareness in remote communities.

West Nile Virus

In the summer of 1999, WCS pathologists were critical to unraveling the mystery surrounding West Nile virus. Their subsequent vaccination work has saved the lives of hundreds of birds within WCS parks as well as in zoos and aquariums throughout the country.

From the Newsroom

Wildlife Faces Cancer ThreatJune 24, 2009

A paper by WCS-Global Health scientists suggests that cancer is a growing threat to wildlife populations, and that environmental pollutants are a major cause.

Rare Vulture Returns to Cambodian SkiesMarch 18, 2009

After nearly dying from eating a poisoned animal carcass, a critically endangered white-rumped vulture was nursed back to health by wildlife veterinarians and conservationists from WCS and Angkor Centre for Conservation of Biodiversity.

General Donation

Help ensure a future for the earth’s most magnificent creatures and the habitats critical to their survival.

How You Can Help

Speak out to save big cats, great apes, and ocean giants. Threatened wildlife can recover if we give them a chance.