130 DISEASES OF WILD DUCKS 



taken), evidently from disease, and Mr. Chambers, the 

 State Fish and Game Commissioner, sent some of them 

 to the Bureau of Animal Industry of the U. S. Depart- 

 ment of Agriculture in order to learn, if possible, the na- 

 ture of the disease. The report, made by Mr. J. R. 

 Mohler, Chief of the Division of Pathology, is interesting 

 to sportsmen and scientists, but the cause of the disease 

 does not seem to have been discovered. The report is as 

 follows : 



"Washington, D. C, Oct. 22, 1910. 

 "Regarding ducks received from you, Oct. 11, through 

 the Bureau of Biological Survey, you are advised that 

 death was due to intestinal coccidiosis. The postmortem 

 examination showed the carcasses to be in good flesh. 

 The viscera were apparently normal, except the intes- 

 tines, which presented throughout the entire length more 

 or less extensive areas of inflammation. Microscopic ex- 

 amination of the intestinal contents revealed immense 

 numbers of coccidia in various stages of development. 

 Microscopic examination of the heart blood of these ducks 

 was negative in three cases. In one case the blood 

 showed in stained films paired rods with rounded ends, 

 somewhat larger than B. coli, also filament and chain for- 

 mation. The inoculation of a pure culture of this organ- 

 ism into a chicken was negative. The feeding of intes- 

 tinal contents to half-grown chickens gave negative re- 

 sults. Similar material inoculated into the back of a rab- 

 bit developed a small area of coagulation necrosis. The 

 death of the rabbit five days after inoculation was due to 

 a severe intestinal and hepatic invasion of coccidia, but a 

 condition quite prevalent in rabbits and due to a cocci- 

 dium peculiar to that species of animal. 



