Tide of foreign pathogens strains net of protection

[Big Kahuna]

http://www.telegram.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061129/NEWS/611290419/1052/NEWSREWIND

ATLANTA— Wildlife inspector Bryan Landry can spot threats everywhere at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport.

A backpack carried off a flight from Nigeria contains plastic bags of meat from the bush that could harbor the lethal Ebola virus.

Those salted duck eggs from South Korea, a delicacy not easily found here, could carry the dreaded bird flu.


And the exotic birds taped to a passenger’s legs and the pair of monkey paws concealed in a bag could harbor any one of several diseases that jump to humans.

Landry and fellow inspectors with the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service are a last line of defense against such risky items before they come across the border, often with unsuspecting people intending only to bring back a taste from home, an exotic pet or a travel memento.

“The issues surrounding disease are quickly becoming a daily event,” Landry said.

Potential carriers are multiplying. Some 210 million wild animals were brought legally into the country last year, and many more were smuggled. The net of protection is thin

http://www.telegram.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20061129/NEWS/611290419/1052/NEWSREWIND

My lil' brother in the news :toast: :patriot: