Assessing the epidemiological and ecological factors related to Procellariiformes mortality in Brazil.

• Grant number: 24/07186-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Doctorate
• Start date: October 01, 2024
• End date: October 31, 2026
• Field of knowledge: Agronomical Sciences - Veterinary Medicine - Animal Pathology
• Principal Investigator: Carolina Reigada Montoya
• Grantee: Laura Baes Caetano
• Host Institution: Centro de Ciências Biológicas e da Saúde (CCBS). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). São Carlos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Procellariiformes (albatrosses, petrels, and shearwaters) are great bioindicators of the marine ecosystem health due to their ability to rapidly respond to environmental challenges. These seabirds face several threats that contribute to their continuous population declines, such as fishing interaction, climate change, invasive species and pollution. Despite the known consequent impacts, information regarding viral infectious agents affecting Procellariiformes is very scarce. In Brazil, according to the Beach Monitoring Project of the Santos Basins (PMP-BS), an average of 1237 Procellariiformes stranded annually in the southern/southeastern Brazilian coasts (between 2017-2022), of which 1072 (86%) stranded dead. In light of the knowledge gap regarding their health and significance of the conservation threats they face worldwide, but especially in Brazil, the goals of this study are to understand the factors involved in Procellariiformes stranding and mortality in the Brazilian coast, by (1) characterizing their occurrence, unusual mortality events, and correlation with climatic events; (2) surveying and characterizing selected infectious agents (herpesvirus, adenovirus and coronavirus) in selected tissues using molecular diagnostics and histopathology; (3) model seabird backdrifting (prior to stranding on the coast). We will use the public database SIMBA (Sistema de Informação de Monitoramento da Biota Aquática) and data provided by the The Brazilian Institute of Environment and Renewable Natural Resources (IBAMA), administered by the Beach Monitoring Programs of Brazil (PMPs). This study will greatly contribute to the current epidemiological, biological, and ecological data regarding the health of Procellariiformes species stranding on the Brazilian coast and assist in the elaboration and implementation of related conservation strategies.