Thierry M Work
Dr. Thierry M Work is currently the project leader for the National Wildlife Health Center Honolulu Field Station where he leads a team that provides support to safeguard wildlife and ecosystem health through research and technical assistance to federal, state, and international partners.
Professional Experience
1992-Present: Project leader, USGS National Wildlife Health Center Honolulu Field Station
1987-1992: Wildlife veterinarian, California Department of Fish & Game
Education and Certifications
1989 Masters in Preventive Veterinary Medicine, UC Davis
1988 Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, UC Davis
1985 Master Science, Entomology, UC Davis
1983 Bachelor Science, Entomology, Texas A&M
Affiliations and Memberships*
Wildlife Disease Association
Sigma Xi
Science and Products
Interagency coordination on coral health
The USGS National Wildlife Health Center (NWHC) supports coral health through participation in two interagency coordination bodies, the Florida Disturbance Advisory Committee, which is focused on joint management of the Florida Coral Reef Tract, and the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force, which is focused on joint management of reef resources within U.S. Territories in both the Caribbean and Pacific.
Integrating Science and Management to Assist with the Response to Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease
A USGS multi-disciplinary team will use laboratory and modeling approaches to investigate the cause of stony coral tissue loss disease.
Filter Total Items: 17
Pathology of lesions in corals from the US Virgin Islands data release
Stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) was first documented in Florida in 2014 and has since spread through the Caribbean causing unprecedented mortality in over 20 species of corals. The cause of SCTLD is unknown, but bacteria are suspected based on regression of gross lesions in some corals treated with antibiotics. Limited pathology studies on SCTLD exist, but it is likely that ‘SCTLD’ is a ge
Enumeration of cell types in Aiptasia for purposes of characterizing cytology
A need exists for additional methods to examine cnidaria at the cellular level to aid our understanding of health, anatomy, and physiology of this important group of organisms. This need is particularly acute given that disease is emerging as a major factor in declines of ecologically important functional groups such as corals. Here we describe a simple method to process cnidarian cells for micros
Mass mortality of collector urchins (Tripneustes gratilla) in Hawai`i
As grazers, sea urchins are keystone species in tropical marine ecosystems, and their loss can have important ecological ramifications. Die-offs of urchins are frequently described but their causesare often unclear, in part because systematic examinations of animal tissues at gross and microscopic level are not done. In some areas, urchins are being employed to control invasive marine algae. Here
Expert assessments of hypotheses concerning the etiological agent(s) of Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease collected during a rapid prototyping project
This dataset is from expert elicitation of a panel of 15 experts with knowledge of stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) and its impacts on coral reefs. We gathered this group of 15 participants with diverse expertise who had previously studied SCTLD including at universities and various government agencies as microbiologists, pathologists, disease ecologists, population ecologists, and coral ex
A reference genome assembly for the endangered Aga or Mariana Crow (Corvus kubaryi)
The Aga, also known as the Mariana Crow, is an endangered endemic crow of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth of the United States of America. The only known population currently extant is on the island of Rota and has been in decline over the past two decades. Unknown pathogens are among the factors that may be contributing to this decline. To support metagenomic and transcriptomic analy
Data on invasive corallimorphs Palmyra
Invasive marine species are well documented but options to manage them are limited. At Palmyra Atoll National Wildlife Refuge (Central North Pacific), native invasive corallimorpharians, Rhodactis howesii, have smothered live native corals since 2007. Laboratory and field trials were conducted evaluating two control methods to remove R. howesii overgrowing the benthos at Palmyra Atoll (Palmyra): 1
Data set on reticuloendotheliosis in Hawaiian birds
Only one virus, Avipox, has been documented in wild birds in Hawaii. Here, using immunohistochemistry and PCR, we found that two native threatened Hawaiian geese, one with multicentric histiocytoma and another with toxoplasmosis and one Laysan albatross with avian pox were infected with reticuloendotheliosis virus (REV). The virus was isolated from one of the geese by cell culture. PCR surveys of
Viral-like particles are associated with endosymbiont pathology in Florida corals affected by stony coral tissue loss disease
Stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) was first documented in 2014 near the Port of Miami, Florida, and has since spread north and south along Florida's Coral Reef, killing large numbers of more than 20 species of coral and leading to the functional extinction of at least one species, Dendrogyra cylindrus. SCTLD is assumed to be caused by bacteria based on presence of different molecular assembl
Sea star wasting disease pathology
Sea star wasting disease (SSWD) is a suite of poorly described non-specific clinical signs including abnormal posture, epidermal ulceration, and limb autotomy (sloughing) causing mortalities of over 20 species of sea stars and subsequent ecological shifts throughout the northeastern Pacific. While SSWD is widely assumed to be infectious with environmental conditions facilitating disease progressio
Mouse predation on Laysan albatross
Invasive rodents on islands have adverse impacts on native birds in island ecosystems, and rats are the most common culprits. Recently, house mice (Mus musculus) in the South Atlantic were found preying on three species of albatross chicks. Here, we show that house mice can also prey on nesting adult Laysan albatross (Phoebastrea immutabilis) on Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge (USA). In cont
Data on blood cells of the collector urchin, Tripneustes gratilla
Echinoderms such as urchins are important in marine ecosystems, particularly as grazers, and unhealthy urchins can have important ecological implications. For instance, unexplained mortalities of Diadema sp. in the Caribbean were followed by algal overgrowth and subsequent collapse of coral reef ecosystems. Unfortunately few tools exist to evaluate echinoderm health making management of mortalitie
Data on serology results for green turtles with and without fibropapillomatosis from Hawaii and Florida
Fibropapillomatosis (FP) is a tumor disease associated with a herpesvirus (Chelonid herpesvirus 5-ChHV5) that affects mainly green turtles globally. Understanding the epidemiology of FP has been hampered by lack of robust serological assays to monitor exposure to ChHV5. This is due in part to inability to efficiently culture the virus in vitro for neutralization assays. Here, we expressed two glyc
Filter Total Items: 169
Pathology of lesions in corals from the US Virgin Islands after emergence of stony coral tissue loss disease
Stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) was first documented in Florida in 2014 and has since spread through the Caribbean causing unprecedented mortality in more than 20 species of corals. The cause of SCTLD is unknown, but bacteria are suspected based on regression of gross lesions in some corals treated with antibiotics. Limited pathology studies on SCTLD exist, but it is likely that ‘SCTLD’ is
Authors
Thierry M. Work, Jeff Miller, Thomas Kelley, Aine C. Hawthorn, Tina Weatherby, Caroline Rogers
Pathology of tissue loss in three key gorgonian species in the Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean is known for its marine biodiversity, especially gorgonian forests. Unfortunately, these are experiencing rapid declines due to climate change, manifested by repeated marine heat waves resulting in mass mortality events since the early 1990 s. To better understand why gorgonians are declining, more systematic approaches to investigate the exact causes are needed, and pathology ma
Authors
Jacopo Gobbato, Thierry M. Work, Martina P. Facchinelli, Federica M. Siena, Enrico Montalbetti, Davide Seveso, Yohan D. Luisa, Paolo Galli, Simone Montano
Stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) case definition for wildlife
Diagnostic laboratories receive carcasses and samples for diagnostic evaluation and pathogen/toxin detection. Case definitions bring clarity and consistency to the evaluation process. Their use within and between organizations allows more uniform reporting of diseases and etiologic agents. The intent of a case definition is to provide scientifically based criteria for determining (a) if an individ
Authors
Aine C. Hawthorn, Michelle Dennis, Yasu Kiryu, Jan Landsberg, Ester Peters, Thierry M. Work
An introduction to lesions and histology of scleractinian corals
Stony corals (Scleractinia) are in the Phylum Cnidaria (cnidae referring to various types of stinging cells). They may be solitary or colonial, but all secrete an external, supporting aragonite skeleton. Large, colonial members of this phylum are responsible for the accretion of coral reefs in tropical and subtropical waters that form the foundations of the most biodiverse marine ecosystems. Coral
Authors
Aine C. Hawthorn, Ilze K. Berzins, Michelle Dennis, Matti Kiupel, Alisa L. Newton, Esther C. Peters, Vicente Avila Reyes, Thierry M. Work
A scuticociliate causes mass mortality of Diadema antillarum in the Caribbean Sea
Echinoderm mass mortality events shape marine ecosystems by altering the dynamics among major benthic groups. The sea urchin Diadema antillarum, virtually extirpated in the Caribbean in the early 1980s by an unknown cause, recently experienced another mass mortality beginning in January 2022. We investigated the cause of this mass mortality event through combined molecular biological and veterinar
Authors
Ian Hewson, Isabella T. Ritchie, James S. Evans, Ashley Altera, Donald Behringer, Erin Bowman, Marilyn E. Brandt, Kayla A. Budd, Ruleo A. Camacho, Tomas O. Cornwell, Peter D. Countway, Aldo Croquer, Gabriel A. Delgado, Christopher M. DeRito, Elizabeth Duermit-Moreau, Ruth Francis-Floyd, Samuel Gittens Jr., Leslie Henderson, Alwin Hylkema, Christina A. Kellogg, Yasu Kiryu, Kimani A. Kitson-Walters, Patricia Kramer, Judith C. Lang, Harilaos Lessios, Lauren Liddy, David Marancik, Stephen Nimrod, Joshua T. Patterson, Marit Pistor, Isabel C. Romero, Rita Sellares-Blasco, Moriah L. B. Sevier, William C. Sharp, Matthew Souza, Andreina Valdez-Trinidad, Marijn van der Laan, Brayan Vilanova-Cuevas, Maria Villalpando, Sarah D. Von Hoene, Matthew Warham, Tom Wijers, Stacey M. Williams, Thierry M. Work, Roy P. Yanong, Someira Zambrano, Alizee Zimmermann, Mya Breitbart
Rapid prototyping for quantifying belief weights of competing hypotheses about emergent diseases
Emerging diseases can have devastating consequences for wildlife and require a rapid response. A critical first step towards developing appropriate management is identifying the etiology of the disease, which can be difficult to determine, particularly early in emergence. Gathering and synthesizing existing information about potential disease causes, by leveraging expert knowledge or relevant exis
Authors
Ellen Padgett Robertson, Daniel P. Walsh, Julien Martin, Thierry M. Work, Christina A. Kellogg, James S. Evans, Aine C. Hawthorn, Greta Aeby, Valerie J. Paul, Brian Walker, Yasu Kiryu, Cheryl M. Woodley, Julie L. Meyer, Stephanie M. Rosales, Michael S. Studivan, Jennifer Moore, Marilyn E. Brandt, Andrew Bruckner
Mass mortality of collector urchins Tripneustes gratilla in Hawai`i
As grazers, sea urchins are keystone species in tropical marine ecosystems, and their loss can have important ecological ramifications. Die-offs of urchins are frequently described, but their causes are often unclear, in part because systematic examinations of animal tissues at gross and microscopic level are not done. In some areas, urchins are being employed to control invasive marine algae. Her
Authors
Thierry M. Work, Julie Dagenais, Robert Rameyer, Renee Breeden, Tina Weatherby
Chapter 5: Health and diseases
Health and diseases are integral parts of the life of seabirds that merit attention if we expect to truly understand, protect, and conserve them. Diseases such as avian influenza, avian pox, pasteurellosis, and paralytic shellfish poisoning have a proven history of decreasing the survival or breeding success of seabirds. However, each host-pathogen-environment system is unique, and our current kno
Authors
Ralph Vanstreels, Marcella Uhart, Thierry M. Work
Invasive corallimorpharians at Palmyra Atoll National Wildlife Refuge are no match for lye and heat
Invasive marine species are well documented but options to manage them are limited. At Palmyra Atoll National Wildlife Refuge (Central North Pacific), native invasive corallimorpharians, Rhodactis howesii, have smothered live native corals since 2007. Laboratory and field trials were conducted evaluating two control methods to remove R. howesii overgrowing the benthos at Palmyra Atoll (Palmyra): 1
Authors
Thierry M. Work, Renee Breeden, Robert Rameyer, Vernon Born, Tim Clark, Jeremy Rainal, Chris Gillies, Julia Rose, Alex Wegmann, Stefan Kropidlowski
Morbidity and mortality of Hawaiin geese (Branta sandvicensis) and Laysan albatross (Phoebastria immutabilis) associated with reticuloendotheliosis virus
Only one virus, Avipox, has been documented previously in wild birds in Hawaii. Using immunohistochemistry and PCR, we found that two native threatened Hawaiian Geese (Branta sandvicensis), one with multicentric histiocytoma and the other with toxoplasmosis, and one Laysan Albatross (Phoebastria immutabilis) with avian pox were infected with reticuloendotheliosis virus (REV). The virus was isolate
Authors
Thierry M. Work, Renee Breeden, Julie Dagenais, Robert Rameyer, Holly Sellers, Hon S. Ip, James W. Casey
A review of asteroid biology in the context of sea star wasting: Possible causes and consequences
Sea star wasting—marked in a variety of sea star species as varying degrees of skin lesions followed by disintegration—recently caused one of the largest marine die-offs ever recorded on the west coast of North America, killing billions of sea stars. Despite the important ramifications this mortality had for coastal benthic ecosystems, such as increased abundance of prey, little is known about the
Authors
Nathalie Oulhen, Maria Byrne, Paige Duffin, Marta Gomez-Chiarri, Ian Hewson, Jason Hodin, Brenda Konar, Erin K Lipp, Benjamin G Miner, Alisa L Newton, Lauren M Schiebelhut, Roxanna Smolowitz, Sarah J Wahltinez, Gary M Wessel, Thierry M. Work, Hossam A Zaki, John P Wares
Non-USGS Publications**
Beale, A.M., Higgins, R.J., Work, T.M., Bailey, C.S., Smith, M.O., Shinka, T., and Hammock, B.D. (1989). MPTP-induced parkinson-like disease in sheep: Clinical and pathologic findings. Journal of Environmental Pathology and Toxicology 9, 417-428.
Hammock, B.D., Beale, A.M., Work, T.M., Gee, S.J., Gunther, R., Higgins, R.J., Shinka, T., and Castagnoli, N. (1989). A sheep model for MPTP induced parkinson-like symptoms. Life Sciences 45, 1601-1608.
Jessup, D.A., Work, T.M., Bushnell, R., Sawyer, M.M., and Osburn, B.I. (1990). An outbreak of bluetongue in captive deer and adjacent livestock in Kern county, California. California Fish and Game 76, 83-90.
Work, T.M., and Jessup, D.A. (1990). Epidemiology and pathology of hemorrhagic disease in free-ranging black-tailed deer in California: 1986-1987. Transactions of the Western Section of the Wildlife Society 26, 72-76.
Work, T.M., Sawyer, M.M., Jessup, D.A., Washino, R.K., and Osburn, B.I. (1990). Effects of anaesthetization and storage temperature on bluetongue virus recovery from Culicoides variipennis (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) and sheep blood. Journal of medical entomology 27, 331-333.
Work, T.M., Washino, R.K., and Van RIper, I.I.I., C (1990). Comparative susceptibility of Culex tarsalis, Anopheles franciscanus and Culiseta inornata (Diptera: Culicidae) to Plasmodium relictum (Haemosporidia: Plasmodiiae). Journal of medical entomology 27, 68-71.
Work, T.M., Mullens, B.A., and Jessup, D.A. (1991). Estimation of survival and gonotrophic cycle length of Culicoides variipennis (Diptera; Ceratopogonidae) in California. Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association 7, 242-249.
Fritz, L., Quilliam, M.A., Wright, J.L.C., Beale, A.M., and Work, T.M. (1992). An outbreak of domoic acid poisoning attributed to the pennate diatom Pseudonitzschia australis. J Phycol 28, 439-442.
Work, T.M., Jessup, D.A., and Sawyer, M.M. (1992). Experimental bluetongue and epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus infeciton in black-tailed deer. J Wildl Dis 28, 623-628.
Work, T.M., Barr, B., Beale, A., Fritz, L., Quilliam, M.A., and Wright, J.L.C. (1993). Epidemiology of domoic acid poisoning in brown pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis) and Brandt's cormorants (Phalacrocorax penicillatus) in California. J Zoo Wildl Med 24, 54-62.
Work, T.M., Beale, A.M., Fritz, L., Quilliam, M.A., Silver, M., Buck, K., and Wright, J. (1993). Domoic acid intoxication of brown pelicans and cormorants in Santa Cruz, California. In Toxic phytoplankton blooms in the sea, T. Smayda, ed. (Copenhagen: Elsiever), pp. 643-649.
Work, T.M., DeLong, R.L., Spraker, T.R., and Melin, S.R. (1993). Halothane anesthesia as a method of immobilizing free-ranging California sea lions (Zalophus californianus). J Zoo Wildl Med 24, 482-487.
Chomel, B.B., Carniciu, M.L., Kasten, R.W., Castelli, P.M., Work, T.M., and Jessup, D.A. (1994). Antibody prevalence of eight ruminant infectious diseases in California mule and black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemioneus). J Wildl Dis 30, 51-59.
Patton, J.F., Work, T.M., Jessup, D.A., Hietala, S.K., Oliver, M.N., and MacLachlan, N.J. (1994). Serologic detection of bluetongue virus infection of black-tailed deer:comparison of the serum neutralization, agar gel immunodiffusion, and competitive ELISA assays. J Wildl Dis 30, 99-102.
Paul-Murphy, J., Work, T., Hunter, D.B., McFie, E., and Fjelline, D. (1994). Serologic survey and serum biochemical reference ranges of the free-ranging mountain lion (Felis concolor) in California. J Wildl Dis 30, 205-215.
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
Science and Products
Interagency coordination on coral health
The USGS National Wildlife Health Center (NWHC) supports coral health through participation in two interagency coordination bodies, the Florida Disturbance Advisory Committee, which is focused on joint management of the Florida Coral Reef Tract, and the U.S. Coral Reef Task Force, which is focused on joint management of reef resources within U.S. Territories in both the Caribbean and Pacific.
Integrating Science and Management to Assist with the Response to Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease
A USGS multi-disciplinary team will use laboratory and modeling approaches to investigate the cause of stony coral tissue loss disease.
Filter Total Items: 17
Pathology of lesions in corals from the US Virgin Islands data release
Stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) was first documented in Florida in 2014 and has since spread through the Caribbean causing unprecedented mortality in over 20 species of corals. The cause of SCTLD is unknown, but bacteria are suspected based on regression of gross lesions in some corals treated with antibiotics. Limited pathology studies on SCTLD exist, but it is likely that ‘SCTLD’ is a ge
Enumeration of cell types in Aiptasia for purposes of characterizing cytology
A need exists for additional methods to examine cnidaria at the cellular level to aid our understanding of health, anatomy, and physiology of this important group of organisms. This need is particularly acute given that disease is emerging as a major factor in declines of ecologically important functional groups such as corals. Here we describe a simple method to process cnidarian cells for micros
Mass mortality of collector urchins (Tripneustes gratilla) in Hawai`i
As grazers, sea urchins are keystone species in tropical marine ecosystems, and their loss can have important ecological ramifications. Die-offs of urchins are frequently described but their causesare often unclear, in part because systematic examinations of animal tissues at gross and microscopic level are not done. In some areas, urchins are being employed to control invasive marine algae. Here
Expert assessments of hypotheses concerning the etiological agent(s) of Stony Coral Tissue Loss Disease collected during a rapid prototyping project
This dataset is from expert elicitation of a panel of 15 experts with knowledge of stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) and its impacts on coral reefs. We gathered this group of 15 participants with diverse expertise who had previously studied SCTLD including at universities and various government agencies as microbiologists, pathologists, disease ecologists, population ecologists, and coral ex
A reference genome assembly for the endangered Aga or Mariana Crow (Corvus kubaryi)
The Aga, also known as the Mariana Crow, is an endangered endemic crow of the Northern Mariana Islands, a Commonwealth of the United States of America. The only known population currently extant is on the island of Rota and has been in decline over the past two decades. Unknown pathogens are among the factors that may be contributing to this decline. To support metagenomic and transcriptomic analy
Data on invasive corallimorphs Palmyra
Invasive marine species are well documented but options to manage them are limited. At Palmyra Atoll National Wildlife Refuge (Central North Pacific), native invasive corallimorpharians, Rhodactis howesii, have smothered live native corals since 2007. Laboratory and field trials were conducted evaluating two control methods to remove R. howesii overgrowing the benthos at Palmyra Atoll (Palmyra): 1
Data set on reticuloendotheliosis in Hawaiian birds
Only one virus, Avipox, has been documented in wild birds in Hawaii. Here, using immunohistochemistry and PCR, we found that two native threatened Hawaiian geese, one with multicentric histiocytoma and another with toxoplasmosis and one Laysan albatross with avian pox were infected with reticuloendotheliosis virus (REV). The virus was isolated from one of the geese by cell culture. PCR surveys of
Viral-like particles are associated with endosymbiont pathology in Florida corals affected by stony coral tissue loss disease
Stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) was first documented in 2014 near the Port of Miami, Florida, and has since spread north and south along Florida's Coral Reef, killing large numbers of more than 20 species of coral and leading to the functional extinction of at least one species, Dendrogyra cylindrus. SCTLD is assumed to be caused by bacteria based on presence of different molecular assembl
Sea star wasting disease pathology
Sea star wasting disease (SSWD) is a suite of poorly described non-specific clinical signs including abnormal posture, epidermal ulceration, and limb autotomy (sloughing) causing mortalities of over 20 species of sea stars and subsequent ecological shifts throughout the northeastern Pacific. While SSWD is widely assumed to be infectious with environmental conditions facilitating disease progressio
Mouse predation on Laysan albatross
Invasive rodents on islands have adverse impacts on native birds in island ecosystems, and rats are the most common culprits. Recently, house mice (Mus musculus) in the South Atlantic were found preying on three species of albatross chicks. Here, we show that house mice can also prey on nesting adult Laysan albatross (Phoebastrea immutabilis) on Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge (USA). In cont
Data on blood cells of the collector urchin, Tripneustes gratilla
Echinoderms such as urchins are important in marine ecosystems, particularly as grazers, and unhealthy urchins can have important ecological implications. For instance, unexplained mortalities of Diadema sp. in the Caribbean were followed by algal overgrowth and subsequent collapse of coral reef ecosystems. Unfortunately few tools exist to evaluate echinoderm health making management of mortalitie
Data on serology results for green turtles with and without fibropapillomatosis from Hawaii and Florida
Fibropapillomatosis (FP) is a tumor disease associated with a herpesvirus (Chelonid herpesvirus 5-ChHV5) that affects mainly green turtles globally. Understanding the epidemiology of FP has been hampered by lack of robust serological assays to monitor exposure to ChHV5. This is due in part to inability to efficiently culture the virus in vitro for neutralization assays. Here, we expressed two glyc
Filter Total Items: 169
Pathology of lesions in corals from the US Virgin Islands after emergence of stony coral tissue loss disease
Stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) was first documented in Florida in 2014 and has since spread through the Caribbean causing unprecedented mortality in more than 20 species of corals. The cause of SCTLD is unknown, but bacteria are suspected based on regression of gross lesions in some corals treated with antibiotics. Limited pathology studies on SCTLD exist, but it is likely that ‘SCTLD’ is
Authors
Thierry M. Work, Jeff Miller, Thomas Kelley, Aine C. Hawthorn, Tina Weatherby, Caroline Rogers
Pathology of tissue loss in three key gorgonian species in the Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean is known for its marine biodiversity, especially gorgonian forests. Unfortunately, these are experiencing rapid declines due to climate change, manifested by repeated marine heat waves resulting in mass mortality events since the early 1990 s. To better understand why gorgonians are declining, more systematic approaches to investigate the exact causes are needed, and pathology ma
Authors
Jacopo Gobbato, Thierry M. Work, Martina P. Facchinelli, Federica M. Siena, Enrico Montalbetti, Davide Seveso, Yohan D. Luisa, Paolo Galli, Simone Montano
Stony coral tissue loss disease (SCTLD) case definition for wildlife
Diagnostic laboratories receive carcasses and samples for diagnostic evaluation and pathogen/toxin detection. Case definitions bring clarity and consistency to the evaluation process. Their use within and between organizations allows more uniform reporting of diseases and etiologic agents. The intent of a case definition is to provide scientifically based criteria for determining (a) if an individ
Authors
Aine C. Hawthorn, Michelle Dennis, Yasu Kiryu, Jan Landsberg, Ester Peters, Thierry M. Work
An introduction to lesions and histology of scleractinian corals
Stony corals (Scleractinia) are in the Phylum Cnidaria (cnidae referring to various types of stinging cells). They may be solitary or colonial, but all secrete an external, supporting aragonite skeleton. Large, colonial members of this phylum are responsible for the accretion of coral reefs in tropical and subtropical waters that form the foundations of the most biodiverse marine ecosystems. Coral
Authors
Aine C. Hawthorn, Ilze K. Berzins, Michelle Dennis, Matti Kiupel, Alisa L. Newton, Esther C. Peters, Vicente Avila Reyes, Thierry M. Work
A scuticociliate causes mass mortality of Diadema antillarum in the Caribbean Sea
Echinoderm mass mortality events shape marine ecosystems by altering the dynamics among major benthic groups. The sea urchin Diadema antillarum, virtually extirpated in the Caribbean in the early 1980s by an unknown cause, recently experienced another mass mortality beginning in January 2022. We investigated the cause of this mass mortality event through combined molecular biological and veterinar
Authors
Ian Hewson, Isabella T. Ritchie, James S. Evans, Ashley Altera, Donald Behringer, Erin Bowman, Marilyn E. Brandt, Kayla A. Budd, Ruleo A. Camacho, Tomas O. Cornwell, Peter D. Countway, Aldo Croquer, Gabriel A. Delgado, Christopher M. DeRito, Elizabeth Duermit-Moreau, Ruth Francis-Floyd, Samuel Gittens Jr., Leslie Henderson, Alwin Hylkema, Christina A. Kellogg, Yasu Kiryu, Kimani A. Kitson-Walters, Patricia Kramer, Judith C. Lang, Harilaos Lessios, Lauren Liddy, David Marancik, Stephen Nimrod, Joshua T. Patterson, Marit Pistor, Isabel C. Romero, Rita Sellares-Blasco, Moriah L. B. Sevier, William C. Sharp, Matthew Souza, Andreina Valdez-Trinidad, Marijn van der Laan, Brayan Vilanova-Cuevas, Maria Villalpando, Sarah D. Von Hoene, Matthew Warham, Tom Wijers, Stacey M. Williams, Thierry M. Work, Roy P. Yanong, Someira Zambrano, Alizee Zimmermann, Mya Breitbart
Rapid prototyping for quantifying belief weights of competing hypotheses about emergent diseases
Emerging diseases can have devastating consequences for wildlife and require a rapid response. A critical first step towards developing appropriate management is identifying the etiology of the disease, which can be difficult to determine, particularly early in emergence. Gathering and synthesizing existing information about potential disease causes, by leveraging expert knowledge or relevant exis
Authors
Ellen Padgett Robertson, Daniel P. Walsh, Julien Martin, Thierry M. Work, Christina A. Kellogg, James S. Evans, Aine C. Hawthorn, Greta Aeby, Valerie J. Paul, Brian Walker, Yasu Kiryu, Cheryl M. Woodley, Julie L. Meyer, Stephanie M. Rosales, Michael S. Studivan, Jennifer Moore, Marilyn E. Brandt, Andrew Bruckner
Mass mortality of collector urchins Tripneustes gratilla in Hawai`i
As grazers, sea urchins are keystone species in tropical marine ecosystems, and their loss can have important ecological ramifications. Die-offs of urchins are frequently described, but their causes are often unclear, in part because systematic examinations of animal tissues at gross and microscopic level are not done. In some areas, urchins are being employed to control invasive marine algae. Her
Authors
Thierry M. Work, Julie Dagenais, Robert Rameyer, Renee Breeden, Tina Weatherby
Chapter 5: Health and diseases
Health and diseases are integral parts of the life of seabirds that merit attention if we expect to truly understand, protect, and conserve them. Diseases such as avian influenza, avian pox, pasteurellosis, and paralytic shellfish poisoning have a proven history of decreasing the survival or breeding success of seabirds. However, each host-pathogen-environment system is unique, and our current kno
Authors
Ralph Vanstreels, Marcella Uhart, Thierry M. Work
Invasive corallimorpharians at Palmyra Atoll National Wildlife Refuge are no match for lye and heat
Invasive marine species are well documented but options to manage them are limited. At Palmyra Atoll National Wildlife Refuge (Central North Pacific), native invasive corallimorpharians, Rhodactis howesii, have smothered live native corals since 2007. Laboratory and field trials were conducted evaluating two control methods to remove R. howesii overgrowing the benthos at Palmyra Atoll (Palmyra): 1
Authors
Thierry M. Work, Renee Breeden, Robert Rameyer, Vernon Born, Tim Clark, Jeremy Rainal, Chris Gillies, Julia Rose, Alex Wegmann, Stefan Kropidlowski
Morbidity and mortality of Hawaiin geese (Branta sandvicensis) and Laysan albatross (Phoebastria immutabilis) associated with reticuloendotheliosis virus
Only one virus, Avipox, has been documented previously in wild birds in Hawaii. Using immunohistochemistry and PCR, we found that two native threatened Hawaiian Geese (Branta sandvicensis), one with multicentric histiocytoma and the other with toxoplasmosis, and one Laysan Albatross (Phoebastria immutabilis) with avian pox were infected with reticuloendotheliosis virus (REV). The virus was isolate
Authors
Thierry M. Work, Renee Breeden, Julie Dagenais, Robert Rameyer, Holly Sellers, Hon S. Ip, James W. Casey
A review of asteroid biology in the context of sea star wasting: Possible causes and consequences
Sea star wasting—marked in a variety of sea star species as varying degrees of skin lesions followed by disintegration—recently caused one of the largest marine die-offs ever recorded on the west coast of North America, killing billions of sea stars. Despite the important ramifications this mortality had for coastal benthic ecosystems, such as increased abundance of prey, little is known about the
Authors
Nathalie Oulhen, Maria Byrne, Paige Duffin, Marta Gomez-Chiarri, Ian Hewson, Jason Hodin, Brenda Konar, Erin K Lipp, Benjamin G Miner, Alisa L Newton, Lauren M Schiebelhut, Roxanna Smolowitz, Sarah J Wahltinez, Gary M Wessel, Thierry M. Work, Hossam A Zaki, John P Wares
Non-USGS Publications**
Beale, A.M., Higgins, R.J., Work, T.M., Bailey, C.S., Smith, M.O., Shinka, T., and Hammock, B.D. (1989). MPTP-induced parkinson-like disease in sheep: Clinical and pathologic findings. Journal of Environmental Pathology and Toxicology 9, 417-428.
Hammock, B.D., Beale, A.M., Work, T.M., Gee, S.J., Gunther, R., Higgins, R.J., Shinka, T., and Castagnoli, N. (1989). A sheep model for MPTP induced parkinson-like symptoms. Life Sciences 45, 1601-1608.
Jessup, D.A., Work, T.M., Bushnell, R., Sawyer, M.M., and Osburn, B.I. (1990). An outbreak of bluetongue in captive deer and adjacent livestock in Kern county, California. California Fish and Game 76, 83-90.
Work, T.M., and Jessup, D.A. (1990). Epidemiology and pathology of hemorrhagic disease in free-ranging black-tailed deer in California: 1986-1987. Transactions of the Western Section of the Wildlife Society 26, 72-76.
Work, T.M., Sawyer, M.M., Jessup, D.A., Washino, R.K., and Osburn, B.I. (1990). Effects of anaesthetization and storage temperature on bluetongue virus recovery from Culicoides variipennis (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) and sheep blood. Journal of medical entomology 27, 331-333.
Work, T.M., Washino, R.K., and Van RIper, I.I.I., C (1990). Comparative susceptibility of Culex tarsalis, Anopheles franciscanus and Culiseta inornata (Diptera: Culicidae) to Plasmodium relictum (Haemosporidia: Plasmodiiae). Journal of medical entomology 27, 68-71.
Work, T.M., Mullens, B.A., and Jessup, D.A. (1991). Estimation of survival and gonotrophic cycle length of Culicoides variipennis (Diptera; Ceratopogonidae) in California. Journal of the American Mosquito Control Association 7, 242-249.
Fritz, L., Quilliam, M.A., Wright, J.L.C., Beale, A.M., and Work, T.M. (1992). An outbreak of domoic acid poisoning attributed to the pennate diatom Pseudonitzschia australis. J Phycol 28, 439-442.
Work, T.M., Jessup, D.A., and Sawyer, M.M. (1992). Experimental bluetongue and epizootic hemorrhagic disease virus infeciton in black-tailed deer. J Wildl Dis 28, 623-628.
Work, T.M., Barr, B., Beale, A., Fritz, L., Quilliam, M.A., and Wright, J.L.C. (1993). Epidemiology of domoic acid poisoning in brown pelicans (Pelecanus occidentalis) and Brandt's cormorants (Phalacrocorax penicillatus) in California. J Zoo Wildl Med 24, 54-62.
Work, T.M., Beale, A.M., Fritz, L., Quilliam, M.A., Silver, M., Buck, K., and Wright, J. (1993). Domoic acid intoxication of brown pelicans and cormorants in Santa Cruz, California. In Toxic phytoplankton blooms in the sea, T. Smayda, ed. (Copenhagen: Elsiever), pp. 643-649.
Work, T.M., DeLong, R.L., Spraker, T.R., and Melin, S.R. (1993). Halothane anesthesia as a method of immobilizing free-ranging California sea lions (Zalophus californianus). J Zoo Wildl Med 24, 482-487.
Chomel, B.B., Carniciu, M.L., Kasten, R.W., Castelli, P.M., Work, T.M., and Jessup, D.A. (1994). Antibody prevalence of eight ruminant infectious diseases in California mule and black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemioneus). J Wildl Dis 30, 51-59.
Patton, J.F., Work, T.M., Jessup, D.A., Hietala, S.K., Oliver, M.N., and MacLachlan, N.J. (1994). Serologic detection of bluetongue virus infection of black-tailed deer:comparison of the serum neutralization, agar gel immunodiffusion, and competitive ELISA assays. J Wildl Dis 30, 99-102.
Paul-Murphy, J., Work, T., Hunter, D.B., McFie, E., and Fjelline, D. (1994). Serologic survey and serum biochemical reference ranges of the free-ranging mountain lion (Felis concolor) in California. J Wildl Dis 30, 205-215.
**Disclaimer: The views expressed in Non-USGS publications are those of the author and do not represent the views of the USGS, Department of the Interior, or the U.S. Government.
*Disclaimer: Listing outside positions with professional scientific organizations on this Staff Profile are for informational purposes only and do not constitute an endorsement of those professional scientific organizations or their activities by the USGS, Department of the Interior, or U.S. Government