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Diseases of Wildlife Scheme

Since 1998, VLA has provided surveillance for wildlife diseases in England and Wales under the Diseases of Wildlife Scheme (VLA DoWS).

The scheme represents the first government funded surveillance project of its kind.

Through co-ordinated surveillance and a shared diagnostic database with a similar scheme run by the Scottish Agricultural College (SAC) in Scotland, and links to Northern Ireland, the scheme can claim to be one of few national wildlife disease schemes in Europe.

The VLA network has:

• 16 VLA Regional Laboratories including two VLA central laboratories,
• two university Surveillance Centres,
• a depth of diagnostic testing, and
• experience in investigating wildlife diseases gained over several decades.

Objectives in investigating diseases of wildlife:

• to investigate new and emerging diseases,
• surveillance for zoonotic diseases (transmissible to man),
• surveillance for disease infectious to domesticated stock,
• surveillance for exotic infections like West Nile Fever,
• investigation of disease that may reflect pollution,
• investigation of wildlife mass mortality incidents.

The scheme also delivers:

• consultation to Defra and government on wildlife disease,
• maintenance of expertise in the field of wildlife disease,
• collaboration with other organisations,
• reports on all aspects of the Diseases of Wildlife Scheme work.

Surveillance

West Nile Virus is one example of how we carry out our surveillance. In 2001, we began to look for West Nile Virus (WNV) in wild bird casualties, so far we have not detected this virus. More recently, we have enhanced our surveillance for avian influenza. This involves examining birds from suspicious incidents and working with other organisations.

Updates on both these surveillance projects are provided in the Wildlife quarterly reports.

Further reading

Microbiology Today (2003), Volume 30, November 2003
This issue provides information on several important emerging wildlife diseases and also on wildlife disease surveillance, including on page 157, wildlife disease surveillance by the Veterinary Laboratories Agency.