Leptospira interrogans serovar Pomona infections cause periodic outbreaks in California sea lions (CSLs; Zalophus californianus ) and sporadic deaths in phocids. However, the frequency of infection and associated health impacts remain uncharacterized in sympatric threatened southern sea otters (SSOs; Enhydra lutris nereis ), which serve as important sentinels of coastal health. Given the broad impacts of L. interrogans on othe...

Klebsiella pneumoniae is a Gram-negative, facultative anaerobic, and non-motile bacillus frequently observed in mammals. A hypermucoviscous (HMV) phenotype of K. pneumoniae is reported in stranded California sea lions (CSL) causing pleuritis and bronchopneumonia as a persistent cause of strandings. We describe an increase in cases of HMV and non-HMV K. pneumoniae in stranded CSLs along the California coast between 2017 to 2022...

Defining baseline mortality and trends in wildlife populations is imperative to understand natural and anthropogenic threats to overall population health and improve conservation measures for species, particularly in geographically confined habitats. The Guadalupe fur seal Arctocephalus townsendi (GFS) is a threatened pinniped that ranges throughout the west coast of Mexico with sporadic dispersion to higher latitudes. Their b...