Sunday, August 14, 2022
London
+6...+15° C
No Result
View All Result
  • Top Stories
  • Political
  • Travel
  • Food
  • Golf
  • Showbiz & TV
  • Backchannel
  • Tennis
  • Contact us
Liverpool News 24
  • Top Stories
  • Political
  • Travel
  • Food
  • Golf
  • Showbiz & TV
  • Backchannel
  • Tennis
  • Contact us
No Result
View All Result
Liverpool News 24
No Result
View All Result
This AI Helps Detect Wildlife Health Issues in Real Time

This AI Helps Detect Wildlife Health Issues in Real Time

Liverpool News 24 by Liverpool News 24
August 16, 2021
in Top Stories
0

During the spring, a troublesome pattern plays out as marine birds along the California coast die from domoic acid poisoning, which is caused by harmful algal blooms. An early clue indicates when and where this problem starts spreading: rescued California brown pelicans, red-throated loons, and other species start turning up at wildlife rehabilitation centers with signs of neurological disease. Yet, though they pepper the state map, these centers are not interconnected enough to nip the issue in the bud. When staffers at one center diagnose a sick bird, others another 40 miles up the road might not be privy to that information.

So researchers at UC Davis recently tested an early detection system that uses artificial intelligence to classify admissions to rehabilitation centers, in the hope of sending wildlife agencies and researchers warnings about growing problems among marine birds and many other kinds of animals. Their system scans intake reports produced at 30 California centers, listing information like the animal’s species, age, reason for admission, and diagnosis. Then the AI uses natural language processing to categorize the reports, looking for patterns in the number of admissions related to certain illnesses and injuries.

The researchers used five years of data and more than 200,000 records to establish baselines for how frequently these conditions normally occur. When the system detects an anomaly—an unusually high number of cases in a given species—it automatically creates an alert, which is delivered to wildlife experts either via the system dashboard, an email, or text message. Because the system processes rehab center admission data in just a day or two, it can produce “prediagnostic” alerts, which are faster than waiting until diagnoses have been confirmed.

In July, the team published a paper describing a test of their system in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society. “We wanted to use the data in an aggregate form to better help rehabbers to see the bigger picture, other than what they see at their individual centers,” says Devin Dombrowski, president of the Wild Neighbors Database Project and one of the authors of the paper.

During the one-year pilot study, the system identified several patterns that indicated larger problems. An influx of marine birds with neurological symptoms like head twitching and whole body tremors triggered an alert. Upon postmortem examination, these birds, including the black and white water bird species western grebes, were found to have domoic acid poisoning. A few months before, a high rate of clinic admissions in the San Francisco Bay Area for rock pigeons showing symptoms of neurological disease triggered another alert. Further investigation established the parasite Sarcocystis calchasi as the cause.

Study coauthor Terra Kelly, a veterinarian and epidemiologist at UC Davis, compares the system to syndromic surveillance for people, which uses electronic health records to monitor public health concerns, such as flu outbreaks, opioid overdoses, and the spread of Zika virus and Covid-19. She points out that an animal alert system could benefit human health, too. “Wild animals can serve as an early indicator” of diseases like West Nile virus, she says. The disease, which has killed more than 2,000 people since 1999, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, is often first noticed in sick birds before it’s diagnosed in domestic animals and people.

Additionally, Kelly says, “We could detect the first animal of invasive species that presents to a center in California.” For example, if the numbers of mourning doves admitted to wildlife centers suddenly changed, the system could create an alert that would signal to veterinarians that the Eurasian collared dove had arrived; they’re an invasive species that competes for food and can spread parasites to native doves.

Tags: artificial intelligencediseasesepidemiologymachine learningpublic healthwildlife

Related Posts

Do Americans Support Abortion Rights? Depends on the State.
Top Stories

Do Americans Support Abortion Rights? Depends on the State.

August 13, 2022
Do Americans Support Abortion Rights? Depends on the State.
Top Stories

Do Americans Support Abortion Rights? Depends on the State.

August 13, 2022
Do Americans Support Abortion Rights? Depends on the State.
Top Stories

Do Americans Support Abortion Rights? Depends on the State.

August 13, 2022
Key Passages From the Leaked Supreme Court Roe v. Wade Draft
Top Stories

Key Passages From the Leaked Supreme Court Roe v. Wade Draft

August 13, 2022
House Delivers Biden Victory, and a Bet on America’s Future
Top Stories

House Delivers Biden Victory, and a Bet on America’s Future

August 13, 2022
Trump Claims He Declassified All the Documents at Mar-a-Lago. Even if That’s True, it Probably Doesn’t Matter
Top Stories

Trump Claims He Declassified All the Documents at Mar-a-Lago. Even if That’s True, it Probably Doesn’t Matter

August 13, 2022

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Roger Federer backed to win Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal duel despite Serb's advantage | Tennis | Sport

Roger Federer backed to win Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal duel despite Serb’s advantage | Tennis | Sport

by Liverpool News 24
December 21, 2021
0

45 per cent of readers thought that Federer would go down as the greatest of all time in men’s tennis.The...

A Place in the Sun buyers refuse to complete house tour 'Not going to happen' | TV & Radio | Showbiz & TV

A Place in the Sun buyers refuse to complete house tour ‘Not going to happen’ | TV & Radio | Showbiz & TV

by Liverpool News 24
February 2, 2022
0

Louise jibed: "Not feeling it," with Lee agreeing and adding: "No, not at all, there are several reasons, you're overlooking...

Rishi Sunak Hints At More Help With Energy Bills If They Rise Again In October

Rishi Sunak Hints At More Help With Energy Bills If They Rise Again In October

by Liverpool News 24
March 29, 2022
0

Rishi Sunak has hinted that the government could offer more help to people facing soaring energy bills in the autumn.The...

A Place In The Sun presenter Craig Rowe addresses show 'rivalry' with co-stars | Celebrity News | Showbiz & TV

A Place In The Sun presenter Craig Rowe addresses show ‘rivalry’ with co-stars | Celebrity News | Showbiz & TV

by Liverpool News 24
January 30, 2022
0

A Place In The Sun newcomer Craig Rowe is no stranger to finding the perfect home after maintaining his own...

How to Ethically Sell and Donate Your Unwanted Stuff

How to Ethically Sell and Donate Your Unwanted Stuff

by Liverpool News 24
February 1, 2022
0

If we have stuff we neither want nor need, what should we do with it?A lot of people save items...

Legal info

  • Privacy Policy
  • Copyright
  • Contact us

Rachel Riley Voices Frustration Over Strictly Come Dancing ‘Curse’ Comments

Tom Cruise Arrives At Top Gun Premiere By Helicopter After Landing Onto An Aircraft Carrier Because… Tom Cruise

Helen Skelton Completes The Strictly Come Dancing 2022 Line-Up

Contact us

If you have a question, please feel free to contact us by using a contact form

Liverpool News 24

All rights reserved © 2022

No Result
View All Result
  • Top Stories
  • Political
  • Travel
  • Food
  • Golf
  • Showbiz & TV
  • Backchannel
  • Tennis
  • Contact us

All rights reserved © 2022

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT