We’re trying to solve a mystery.
Why are frigatebird chicks so vulnerable to a viral disease?
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Thanks to your support, this project is fully funded!
On a small rocky island off the coast of French Guiana, a colony of magnificent frigatebirds is in peril.
Every year, 90% of their chicks fall ill and die of a devastating viral disease.
In order to help them, we have to understand why so many chicks become sick.
That’s where you come in.
Dr. Manrico Sebastiano is studying the environmental factors that make frigatebird chicks so vulnerable.
He’s piecing together an intricate puzzle: one that involves food shortages, parental care, and mercury poisoning. Dr. Sebastiano is crowdfunding this research project on Experiment.com, where he’s competing for a grant from the Wildlife Disease Association. You can read more about the project your donation supports here.
With a total of 88 individual donors, this project won second prize in the WDA grant competition and $750 additional funding.
Thank you for your support!
Wild Animal Initiative is helping to build an academic discipline of wild animal welfare research. You can read some of our past work on our blog. Follow us on Twitter and subscribe to our monthly highlights for research, news, and opportunities.