A History Of Wildlife
Conservation & Rehabilitation
by Kenneth B. Haas
Edited by Dan Mackey
One of the oldest texts mentioning diseases of birds and fish
is the Veterinary Papyrus of Kahun, 1900 BCE. The Bible recognizes that
humans and animals are affected by the same diseases: “For that which befalleth
the sons of man befalleth beasts… so that a man hath no preeminence above
the beasts. (Ecclesiastes 3:19).1 The Bible also makes an ecological statement:
“Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees.” (Revelations 7:3).
Mohammed said there is no place in heaven for those with a hard
heart and The Koran states, “Verily there are rewards for doing good to
dumb animals and giving them water to drink.”
Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha (563-483 BCE), said, “Harm no
living thing.” Recognizing the necessity for wildlife conservation, Mencius
(ca 372-289 BCE) said, “If close nets are not allowed to enter the pools
and ponds, the fish and turtles will be more than can be consumed.”2
India offers a most concrete example of wildlife rehabilitation
in antiquity. In many ways, King Asoka (274-236 BCE) can be viewed as the
“Father of Wildlife Rehabilitation.”3 His empire included two-thirds of
the Indian subcontinent as well as Afghanistan. Converted to Buddhism,
he erected The Bibles of Granite, which dealt with the rights of all living
things. Its first two edicts state: “All life is sacred and there will
be no more slaughter of animals for the sacrificial altar or royal table;”
and “The well-being of all living things shall be the duty of the individual
and of the state.”
He was the first to proclaim wildlife legislation, first to
support animal welfare, first to build wildlife refuges and the first to
recognize animal geriatrics. He engaged people to cultivate medicinal herbs,
roots and flowers and to attend sick and aged animals. King Asoka recognized
the human-animal bond.
In Greek legend, Artemis, daughter of Zeus and Leto, was the
goddess of wildlife. (Under the Romans she was known as Diana.) In the
12th century, Francesco Bernardone became St. Francis of Assisi. He had
deep reverence for birds and beasts and is often called the Patron Saint
of Animals.
Except for falcons and their diseases, little more is said of
wildlife for centuries.
20th Century Conservation
Early wildlife conservation concerned specific conditions in
individual species. Lead poisoning of waterfowl has been known since 1894.4
In 1914-1915, Alexander Wetmore demonstrated that ducks die after eating
lead shot. In 1931, it was found that western duck sickness was caused
by the type C toxin of Clostridium botulinus.5
In the 1930s, the Bureau Of Animal Industry conducted studies
on tularemia (rabbit fever), a disease transmitted from rabbits to humans.
In the 1950s, Dr. Frank Hayes studied the causes of white-tail deer die-offs
(which proved to be hemorrhagic disease) and in 1958, Dr. Lou Locke investigated
trichomoniasis (a protozoal disease) in doves.6
Wildlife conservation in the mid-twentieth century concerned
entire ecosystems. Massive environmental deterioration has been recognized
since the 1950s and steps taken to attempt to improve environmental quality.
A series of serendipitous observations in wildlife warned of
dangers inherent in the misuse of DDT, organic mercury and PCBs. Wildlife
began to be monitored for adverse effects. Various environmental sciences
have since emerged.
The Wildlife Disease Association was founded in 1951. In the
1970s, courses in wildlife medicine began to be offered in veterinary schools
and preceptorships offered in wildlife medicine. A gun was developed that
could deliver immobilizing and tranquilizing agents to wildlife, anesthesia
was refined, and the use of antibiotics and parasiticides was explored.
The American Association of Wildlife Veterinarians was founded in 1979.
The human-wildlife bond became better appreciated.
Zoonotic Disease Research
Zoonoses research received a major stimulus when it was found
that many species of wildlife are reservoirs of infections for humans and
their farm animals and pets. Especially important was the discovery that
wildlife carry arboviruses (ar = arthropod, bo = borne.) It was then realized
that certain diseases transmitted from wildlife to humans will be difficult
or impossible to eradicate.
Only rabid bats, foxes, skunks and wildlife used as food are
known to transmit infections directly to humans. Erysipelothrix insidiosa,
Clostridium botulinum type E, and Listeria monocytogenes are found in fish.
A tuberculosis-like mycobacterium-causing “swimming pool granuloma” in
humans is found in fish tanks and similar mycobacterium is found in toads.
Wildlife harbor a large number of pathogens and their role in transmission
to humans has gone largely unstudied. The zoonotic role of cold-blooded
wildlife is almost completely ignored.
Salmonellae are found in fish, fogs, lizards, snakes and tortoises.
It is estimated that 14% of the salmonellosis in the U.S. is associated
with turtles (280,000 human cases a year.) Brucella abortus is found in
lizards, snakes, toads and tortoises; mycobacteria in snakes and toads;
leptospira in goldfish, lizards, snakes and turtles; Eastern and Western
equine encephalomyelitis in alligators, fish, lizards, snakes and turtles.
Prevention of zoonoses in rehabilitators is a priority.7-10
Many organisms cause “silent disease” in wildlife, but cause overt disease
in humans and domestic animals. Wildlife diseases have low priority in
federal agencies, and research is underfunded.
Wildlife Legislation
In 1913, Congress finally passed the Migratory Bird Act. In 1918,
the U.S. and Canada signed the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. In 1936, Mexico
signed. The first real measure of protection for raptors came in 1940,
with passage of the Bald Eagle Act. In 1962, golden eagles were given protection
under this law. Birds of prey were totally protected under a 1972 amendment
to the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.11
Comprehensive federal legislation protecting wildlife came into
existence with the Marine Mammal Protection Act (MMPA) of 1972 and the
Endangered Species Act(ESA) of 1973. The MMPA demonstrates that the federal
government has interest in a more holistic approach to the conservation
of marine mammals and their environment; the ESA is concerned with conservation
of all wildlife.
In 1988, Congress passed the “Mitchell Amendment” to the Fish
And Wildlife Conservation Act of 1980, directing the U.S. Secretary of
the Interior to (1) monitor and assess population trends of migratory non-game
birds, (2) identify effects of human activities on these species, (3) identify
migratory species of concern, and (4) identify actions to prevent these
species from becoming endangered.
The Animal Welfare Act mandates that the U.S. Department of
Agriculture, through its Animal And Plant Inspection Service (APHIS), safeguard
the welfare of animals used in education, exhibition, research and testing,
and provides for adequate veterinary care. APHIS is also concerned with
wildlife diseases that might be transmitted to livestock.
America is a signatory of over 70 international treaties concerning
wildlife. One of the most important is The Convention On The International
Trade In Endangered Species Of Wild Fauna And Flora (CITES), in which the
U.S. joins more than 120 countries in regulating commercial trade in endangered
species.
Rehabilitation is under close scrutiny by animal rights groups,
animal welfare groups, biologists, ecologists, government agencies, veterinarians
and rehabilitators themselves. Local, state and federal laws demand rehabilitation
for certain species. Rehabilitators are regulated by federal, state and
municipal agencies.
Organized Rehabilitation
In the beginning, rehabilitation was conducted in homes by compassionate
but often untrained individuals. Early rehabilitation was also carried
out by some institutions. Trailside Museum in River Forest, IL has rehabilitated
wildlife since 1939.12
Beginning in the 1960s and 1970s, environmental education centers,
junior museums and nature centers began rehabilitation relying largely
on private support and volunteers. As they became more organized, they
involved themselves in wildlife behavior, handling, management, nutrition
and restraint techniques. The Lindsay Museum and Wildlife Hospital in Walnut
Creek, CA has cared for injured and orphaned wild animals since 1968.13
The Kalamazoo Nature Center Wild Animal Care and Rehabilitation Program
has been conducting wildlife rehabilitation since 1971.14
Although many wildlife rehabilitation centers had been funded
and founded prior to the marine oil spills of the early 1970s, these catastrophes
raised industrial and government concern and brought public visibility
to rehabilitation. More rehabilitative facilities were built and paid positions
eventually evolved.
As in the past, funding continues to come largely from private
sources, with minimum government support. This will probably continue.
In addition to caring for the medical needs of wildlife, structured
rehabilitation offers the important function of educating the community
on wildlife and the environment.
In 1972, a group of California rehabilitators formed the Wildlife
Rehabilitation Council. In 1986, they became the International Wildlife
Rehabilitation Council (IWRC).15
They are primarily providers of wildlife rehabilitation education in the U.S. and Canada, promoting networking and education through annual conferences, certified skills seminars, publications and an information hotline. They publish annual symposium proceedings, issue the quarterly Journal Of Wildlife Rehabilitation, a newsletter, Newsline and a membership directory as well as other rehabilitation literature. When the National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association (NWRA) was founded in 1982, the two organizations developed the NWRA/IWRC Wildlife Rehabilitation Minimum Standards & Accreditation Program detailing facility operation and wildlife care and housing.16 IWRC has 1700 members, of which approximately 10% are international. Since 1982, the NWRA has been central in providing information to rehabilitators and in establishing standards of wildlife care. The NWRA states that wildlife rehabilitation “has come a long way in a short time,” that rehabilitation is “treatment and temporary care of injured, diseased and displaced indigenous wildlife and the subsequent return of healthy animals to appropriate habitats in the wild,” rather than simply “trying to help.”17 NWRA provides referrals to rehabilitators, has a network for information exchange, promotes professionalism and encourages cooperation within environmental groups, governmental agencies, and rehabilitation and wildlife communities. They offer grants for studies in behavior, nutrition, toxicology, and wildlife medicine, host a yearly symposium where new information and treatments are presented and discussed. They publish an annual proceedings, Wildlife Rehabilitation (formerly edited by Paul Beaver, Ph.D., Dan Mackey, and currently Dr. Daniel R. Ludwig), a newsletter: the NWRA Quarterly, NWRA Quick Reference book, NWRA Principles Of Wildlife Rehabilitation book and a membership directory. Membership is open to everyone, including biologists, educators, environmentalists, humane society members, veterinarians and zoo personnel. They developed A Wildlife Rehabilitator’s Code Of Ethics in cooperation with IWRC.18 The founding board of directors of NWRA was composed of 18 people from 11 states: Patricia Adams, Harold F. Albers, DVM, Paul Beaver, Ph.D., Walter C. Crawford, Jr., Gary E. Duke, Ph.D., Richard H. Evans, DVM, James M. Fitzpatrick, Jane Gulley, Ralph T. Heath, Jr., Betsy Jones, Sally Joosten, Mark Lerman, DVM, Jane Lyons, Debbie Marcum, Deborah Mumford, Paul A. Nash, III, Carol Odell and Elaine Thrune.19
To be continued. Please see the Fall 1998 issue for the conclusion of “A History Of Wildlife Conservation & Rehabilitation.”
References
1. Haas, K. B., Davidson, J. L. The Story Of Veterinary Medicine, The
Science Counselor, 19:129-130, 149. 1956.
2. Wilson, E. The Wisdom Of Confucius, Books Inc., New York. 1900.
3. Haas, K. B., The Father Of Wildlife Rehabilitation. Wildlife Rehabilitation
Today, Spring Edition, 1992, p. 52.
4. Schwabe, C. W., Veterinary Medicine And Human Health, (ed. 2). The
Williams & Wilkins Company, Baltimore. 1969. p. 523.
5. Dunlop, R. H., Williams, D. J., Veterinary Medicine. An Illustrated
History, Mosby, St. Louis. 1996. p. 588.
6. Proceedings Of The Wildlife Health Workshop, Fort Collins, CO. 1991.
p. 10.
7. Haas, K. B., Preventing Zoonotic Infections, Wildlife Rehabilitation
Today, Winter Edition, 1993, p. 37.
8. Haas, K. B., Preventing Zoonotic Infections, Wildlife Rehabilitation
Today, Summer Edition, 1993, p. 7.
9. Paul-Murphy, J., Zoonoses From Wild Birds And Mammals In Rehabilitation
Centers, The North American Veterinary Conference Veterinary Proceedings,
Orlando, Florida. 1994.
10. Evans, R. H., Reduce Your Reptile Infection Risk, Wildlife Rehabilitation
Today, Fall Edition, 1994, pp. 39-40.
11. Crawford, W. C., Jr. Human Populations: Their Impact On Raptor
Mortality, unpublished manuscript. 1997.
12. Moe V. Animal Inn, Houghtin Mifflin Company, Boston. 1946.
13. Bishop, W. The Lindsay Museum’s New Wildlife Hospital, Wildlife
Rehabilitation Today, Fall Edition, pp. 4-7. 1993.
14. Evans, M. (ed.), Wild Animal Care And Rehabilitation Manual. Beach
Leaf Press, Kalamazoo, MI. 1991.
15. International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council brochure, courtesy
Ms. Louise A. Shimmel. 1997.
16. International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council/National Wildlife
Rehabilitators Association, Wildlife Rehabilitation Minimum Standards &
Accreditation Program, p. 1.
17. Fact Sheet, National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association, courtesy
Ms. Elaine M. Thrune. 1997.
18. Thrune, E. M. Wildlife Rehabilitation: A History And Perspective.
1995.
19. National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association. Founding Board Of
Directors, 1982. Courtesy Elaine M. Thrune.