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BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Ground squirrels south of Boise have tested positive for plague, and humans and pets should avoid the area, Idaho health officials say.
The bacterial disease can be spread by the bites of fleas or by direct contact with infected animals, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare said in a statement Friday.
"We would probably advise people not to go out in that area," said Tom Shanahan, spokesman for the agency. "If you go out there, you need to take precautions."
Officials said that includes insect repellent and staying away from dead animals. Pets should be protected with flea-repellent products and not be allowed to roam free, which increases the chances of a pet rolling on a dead ground squirrel or picking it up.
Mike Keckler of Idaho Fish and Game said the agency investigated earlier this week after receiving reports of dead ground squirrels and found 24 die-off sites. Seven dead squirrels were sent overnight to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, he said, and researchers confirmed on Friday morning to Idaho officials that plague caused the deaths.
A map of the infected area is a circle shape extending about 45 miles south from Boise to the Snake River. The boundary also extends over Interstate 84, but it doesn't reach Mountain Home. The boundary nearly reaches Kuna in the west.
The desert area is popular in the spring, Keckler said, with a variety of outdoor enthusiasts when temperatures are cooler.
Symptoms of plague in humans include fever, chills, headache and weakness, and prompt diagnosis and treatment greatly reduces the fatality rate, officials said. The last two cases reported in Idaho, officials said, occurred in 1991 and 1992. Both patients fully recovered.
The species of ground squirrel in the area is called the Piute and is found across much of southern Idaho, said Bill Bosworth, a wildlife biologist with Fish and Game. The squirrels live in colonies that can be large with interconnected burrows, he said. He didn't have a population estimate.
The plague is believed to have reached Idaho in about the 1930s and has likely been in the ground squirrel population for decades, Bosworth said. It's not clear why it's causing a die-off this year, he said. The squirrels, he said, will become dormant in mid-June when they retreat to their burrows and won't emerge again until February.
The infected area includes the Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey National Conservation Area. The large number of nesting raptors in the area is made possible, Bosworth said, because of the large population of ground squirrels active in the spring that the birds prey on. It's not clear how susceptible raptors are to plague, he said.
Coyotes, badgers, weasels and rattle snakes also prey on the ground squirrels.
"We don't have a lot of information on this particular species and how it responds to a plague incident like this," Bosworth said. "There will be areas where they survive. There may be some areas where virtually all the ground squirrels succumb."
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