Abstract
This is a first edition introductory text on disease in wild animals. It should prove useful to a variety of professionals interested in wildlife, including veterinarians, pathologists, conservation biologists, public health specialists, and wildlife management personnel. This book is intended as an overview of disease principals, and does not provide detailed reviews of specific disease conditions or their associated pathology.
Since this book is written by a single author, the style is uniform throughout. It is organized into 14 relatively short (10 to 20 page) chapters. Each chapter is enhanced by multiple tables, graphs, high quality black and white photographs (predominantly gross lesions and relatively few photomicrographs). In addition, each chapter concludes with a bulleted list of important summary concepts. All references are listed in a single bibliography at the end of the book. These references are complete (over 600), current through 2004, and contain many of the important wildlife disease publications from the last 100 years with heavy emphasis on the most recent 25 years. Chapter topics begin with introductory material on defining disease, the causes of disease, and disease surveillance. Next are a series of chapters focusing on disease pathogenicity, host defenses and resistance to disease, environmental effects on disease, disease transmission, and an overview of noninfectious diseases. Finally there are chapters dealing with disease at the individual animal level, disease at the population level, zoonotic diseases, and disease management concepts. Useful additions include an appendix listing the common and scientific names for wildlife species mentioned in the text, a glossary of scientific terminology, and a thorough index.
Dr. Wobeser is an internationally known pathologist, teacher, and researcher with extensive wildlife disease experience. This book is easy to read, and utilizes many specific examples, many from Dr. Wobeser's personal experience, to illustrate the concepts discussed. While there are many texts describing specific diseases of wildlife species, this book offers a concise overview of health dynamics in wildlife and their interaction with environmental factors, as well as with man and domestic animals. I know of no other text which concisely summarizes this information. While reading this book will not make one an expert in wildlife pathology, it does serve as a valuable introductory reference and an overview of health and disease in wildlife species. I would recommend this text to anyone currently training for a career involving the diagnosis or management of disease in wildlife, or anyone interested in learning more on this topic.