Kaua‘i Avian Botulism Surveillance Track Data
type: Dataset
description: Hawai‘i’s endangered waterbirds have experienced epizootics caused by ingestion of prey that accumulated a botulinum neurotoxin produced by the anaerobic bacterium Clostridium botulinum (avian botulism; Type C). Waterbird carcasses, necrophagous flies, and their larvae initiate and spread avian botulism, a food-borne paralytic disease lethal to waterbirds. Each new carcass has potential to develop toxin-accumulating necrophagous vectors amplifying outbreaks and killing hundreds of endangered birds. Early carcass removal is an effective mitigation strategy for preventing avian intoxication, toxin concentration in necrophagous and secondary food webs, and reducing the magnitude of epizootics. However, rapid detection of carcasses can be problematic and labor intensive. Therefore, we tested a new method using scent detection canines for avian botulism surveillance on the island of Kaua‘i. During operational surveillance and a randomized double-blind field trial, trained detector canines with experienced field handlers improved carcass detection probability, especially in dense vegetation. Detector canines could be combined with conventional surveillance to optimize search strategies for carcass removal and are a useful tool to reduce risks of the initiation and propagation of avian botulism. This dataset is one of the three datasets that make up this data release. This table contains GPS track data for 166 surveillance surveys conducted using either all-terrain vehicles (ATVs), detector canines, or humans on foot.
keyword: amerigeo
keyword: amerigeoss
keyword: avian-botulism
keyword: avian-disease
keyword: biota
keyword: canine-detection
keyword: ckan
keyword: clostridium-botulinum
keyword: geo
keyword: geoss
keyword: hawaii
keyword: kauai
keyword: kauai-county
keyword: koloa-maoli
keyword: national
keyword: north-america
keyword: taro
keyword: united-states
keyword: usgs-60246dbed34eb120311388df
keyword: waterbirds
keyword: wetlands
keyword: wildlife-biology
issued: 2025-11-20T22:36:40.133120
modified: 20210211
theme: {geospatial}
contact point: Organization
  fn: (Steven) Paul Berkowitz
spatial: Location

US Migrating
type: Agent

Original Metadata
type: Distribution
description: The metadata original format
media type: text/xml
format: XML
access URL: https://data.usgs.gov/datacatalog/metadata/USGS.60246dbed34eb120311388df.xml
issued: 2022-07-07T14:59:47.699024
modified: 2025-11-20T22:36:40.121060

Digital Data
type: Distribution
description: Landing page for access to the data
media type: application/http
format: XML
access URL: https://doi.org/10.5066/P9C4N47X
issued: 2022-07-07T14:59:47.699031
modified: 2025-11-20T22:36:40.121472