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Gulls commonly carry E. coli and often show no signs of illness. However, this is the first report of antibiotic resistant E. coli in birds in the southcentral Alaska region. While it is still unclear how gulls are picking up antibiotic resistant strains of E. coli, possible sources include landfills and wastewater discharge.
USGS and collaborators sampled gulls on the urban Kenai Peninsula and on the remote Middleton Island, a location far offshore in the Gulf of Alaska. The samples were tested, and results show more antibiotic resistant bacteria in birds in areas with higher levels of human use. Areas tested on the Kenai Peninsula’s Soldotna Landfill and the mouth of the Kenai River were chosen because of earlier water quality sampling performed by the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation near these areas.
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