Ethical approvals
This research was conducted under approval of the U.S. Geological Survey
National Wildlife Health Center’s Animal Care and Use Committee,
protocol numbers EP090325, EP120302, and EP153020 in strict accordance
with guidelines set forth in the U.S. Government’s Animal Welfare Act
and the National Institutes of Health Office of Laboratory Animal
Welfare. Permits for the capture and sampling of wild birds were issued
by the Icelandic Institute of Natural History (Permit Numbers 368 and
403). Permits to ship collected cloacal swab samples from Iceland to the
United States (U.S.) were obtained from the Icelandic Institute of
Natural History, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the US Fish and
Wildlife Service. All sampling occurred in conjunction with the
Southwest Iceland Nature Research Institute, the University of Iceland,
Snæfellsnes Research Centre, the Icelandic Institute of Natural History,
and in the case of private lands, with the specific permission of
landowners.