Category: Research Results

What is it? The Usutu virus originated in Africa and is named after the Usutu river in Swaziland. It can cause disease in birds and is transmitted by midges. The virus rarely causes disease in humans.

At the beginning of June 2017 a roebuck in the province of Utrecht was spotted behaving oddly; the animal showed no flight response and stood still rather than fleeing when approached. The animal was euthanised by a nature warden and submitted to the DWHC for post-mortem exam.

In the autumn of 2016 the Usutu virus was responsible for the death of large numbers of blackbirds as well as captive Snowy owls and Lapland owls. The last Usutu virus activity was recorded that November.

The greenfinch and other species of finch were the focus species of the Dutch Wildlife Health Centre DWHC in 2016. These species were chosen in order to shed light on the presence of trichomonas infection in greenfinches and other finch sorts in the Netherlands.

In October 2016 the cadaver of a red deer stag with extensive damage to the skin of the back was submitted to the DWHC. Investigations revealed a severe chronic-active dermatitis (inflammation of the skin) which was possibly a result of self-trauma due to itchiness caused by the large number of deer keds (biting

Distemper was detected in a stone marten (Martes foina) from the Enschede area in the Dutch province of Overijssel. The animal was seen to be behaving oddly for several days before being found dead in a pond in December 2016.