Archive: 2023

At DWHC, we regularly receive photos from hunters who discover unusual abnormalities during gutting. Often, these are organs with unusual spots and/or lumps. It’s almost never possible to determine the nature of the disease based solely on a photo. However, in certain cases, it’s not an

In September 2023, bluetongue virus (BTV, serotype 3) was detected in sheep. Bluetongue is a viral disease that primarily affects sheep and cattle, but other ruminants such as deer can also be infected. The virus is transmitted by infected midges.

Avian influenza is circulating again among wild birds in the Netherlands. In November, the virus was detected in birds in the provinces of Gelderland, Friesland, Groningen, and Utrecht.

For the first time in the Netherlands, tularemia has been confirmed in a wild red squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris). The squirrel was found sick in early October 2023 in the municipality of Bunnik, province of Utrecht, and died shortly thereafter. The squirrel was collected by the DWHC for post-mortem investigation.

In October, a dead beaver was found in the municipality of Maashorst, North-Brabant. The animal had settled there about a year ago. The beaver was collected by the DWHC for post-mortem investigation.

Joint report from the Dutch Wildlife Health Centre, Erasmus MC, the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment, and Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, with thanks to the Royal Dutch Hunters’ Association (KNJV), Zuid-Kennemerland National Park, and Waternet.

Dead white stork. Photo: Ferry Brands On 16 July 2023, an almost fully fledged white stork (Ciconia ciconia) was found under its nest in Megen, Noord-Brabant. Half an hour before the young was practising wing flapping. The stork was collected by the DWHC in Utrecht to investigate the cause of death.

At the end of June 2023, a roebuck in the province of Limburg was put out of its misery and collected for research by the DWHC in Utrecht. The roebuck had swollen front legs, had difficulty standing, did not flee when approached and was shaking a little with his head (tremor).

In mid-April 2023, a dead female adult sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus) in poor body condition was submitted to the DWHC for pathological investigation.

In January and February 2023, the DWHC has examined four beavers for cause of death. Two animals came from the province of Noord-Brabant and two came from the province of Gelderland. One of the beavers from Noord-Brabant was stuck in a fence (see picture). The fence had been there for 50 years already, and in the