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Old 07-31-2005, 04:27 PM   #36
ApS
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Default Please, feed the ducks?

Quote:
Originally Posted by NHKathy
P.S. - Do ducks get duck-itch ?
The parasite that causes duck-itch leaves the snail host looking for waterfowl. (So ducks do get duck-itch: It may not actually itch the duck -- have to ask)

A new site (to me) states that keeping vegetation down to reduce the number of snails is important.

Did Lake Winnipesaukee's "duck-itch" problem follow right behind the spread of exotic milfoil? I don't recall milfoil OR duck-itch from a Winnipesaukee summer camp years ago.

They also state that there may be a medicine to give to waterfowl to treat the condition in the bird. ('Course, the state will then have to put up signs saying "Please feed the ducks").

Quote:
Since swimmer's itch is really a disease of aquatic birds, the target should be to reduce the possibilities of the birds getting infected. In some small ponds and lakes, the intermediate snails can be killed by chemical molluscicides (copper sulfate or copper carbonate). A newer approach has been to place a drug for treatment of the parasite into food bait for the aquatic birds. Indirectly, it is important that any vegetation in the pond or the lake be kept to a minimum so that the snails do not have the ideal environment to grow. http://dermnetnz.org/arthropods/swimmers-itch.html
They also state that if you have not been previously affected by the parasites, you may not have developed the normal immune-response that causes the itch upon your second exposure. I'd question one's duck-itch "immunity".
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