[texbirds] West Nile Virus near Lake Houston and musings about Fish Crows

From: "Collins, Fred (Commissioner Pct. 3)" <Fred_Collins@xxxxxxxx>
To: "1 Texbirds (texbirds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx)" <texbirds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Fri, 14 Jun 2013 14:49:18 +0000

Today on my e-mail this notice popped up. I suggest birders chasing birds in NE 
Harris County should be cautious.

"Harris County Public Health & Environmental Services (HCPHES) Mosquito Control 
has confirmed that a Culex quinquefasciatus mosquito sample has tested positive 
for West Nile Virus (WNV) in Harris County.
The positive sample was collected from a mosquito trapping site in northeast 
Harris County, ZIP Code 77346.
This is the first confirmed mosquito sample in Harris County this year that has 
tested positive for West Nile Virus.  "


If you do not have proper respect for mosquito borne diseases I have a reading 
suggestion for you, An American Plague by Jim Murphy. This book while 
non-fiction reads more like a sci-fi thriller with a little horror thrown in. 
It's a great who done it, a great story of extreme dedication.

I have made a couple of recent jaunts into NE Harris County very near the area 
where the mosquito was detected. One bird I was particularly interested in was 
Fish Crow. I have found them in several locations on each trip. One on the very 
busy commercial section of 1960, some in a neighborhood in Summerwood and of 
course the reliable boat ramp birds at Deusen Park.  I got my lifer Fish Crow 
at the Lake Houston Dam in 1971 so the birds have long been in the area. 
However, they were very limited in number and range in 1971. Today they seem 
common throughout the area. Most jays and crows have had population declines 
since West Nile became common. The Fish Crow seems to buck that trend. Are Fish 
Crows less affected by West Nile? Are they taking advantage of less competition 
from other corvids whose populations are depressed by West Nile?

If this is a redundant and a well-known fact, I apologize. These thoughts just 
popped up and I have not tried to research the topic.

Cross posted to TX-Ornithology

Fred Collins
             (281) 357-5324
Director: Kleb Woods Nature Center
             Cypress Top Historical Park
Commissioner Steve Radack
Harris County Precinct 3
www.pct3.hctx.net<http://www.pct3.hctx.net>







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[texbirds] West Nile Virus near Lake Houston and musings about Fish Crows

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