RESEARCH Table 1. Potential anthrax cases detected in Serengeti wildlife species, Tanzania, 1996–2009 Common name Species Baboon Papio anubis Black rhinoceros Diceros bicornis Buffalo Syncerus caffer Bushbuck Tragelaphus scriptus Cheetah Acinonyx jubatus Duiker Sylvicapra grimmia Eland Taurotragus oryx Elephant Loxodonta africana Grant’s gazelle Nanger granti Giraffe Giraffa camelopardalis Hartebeest Alcelaphus buselaphus Hippopotamus Hippopotamus amphibious Impala Aepyceros melampus Ostrich Struthio camelus Serval Leptailurus serval Thomson’s gazelle Eudorcas thomsonii Topi Damaliscus korrigum jimela Vulture Gyps africanus Warthog Phacochoerus africanus Waterbuck Kobus ellipsiprymnus defassa Wildebeest Connochaetes taurinus Zebra Equus burchellii *Outbreak reported but individual case counts not available. Suspected 0 1 20 1 0 0 0 24 2 14 0 32 35 0 0 7 0 0 0 1 112 34 No. cases Probable 1 0 85 0 1 1 1* 7 3 8 1 14 659 1 1 5 4 2 2 1 60 83 serval) during an outbreak in 1998 were the only carnivore cases reported during the study. Cases were detected every year in NCA and SNP. However, major reported outbreaks were limited in time and space (Figure 1, panel A). Species affected and extent of outbreaks varied. Impalas were predominantly affected during 2 outbreaks (in southcentral Serengeti in late January–early February 1998 [14] and in central Serengeti in January 2003). Wildebeest and zebras were mostly affected during an outbreak east of SNP in early 2006. Buffalo were most recently affected southwest of SNP in October 2009. Small numbers of zebra deaths were recorded regularly throughout the study period, in addition to the 2006 outbreak. Livestock Cases During 1996–1999, several large outbreaks (>500 deaths) were documented in livestock (goats, sheep, and cattle) east of SNP. Suspected cases were reported regularly in some localities in apparently localized disease-endemic foci (i.e., Olbalbal, Oiti, and Olduvai; Figure 1, panel B). Small-scale vaccinations in the local vicinity were generally performed in response to these outbreaks. No livestock cases were reported from 2000 until the end of 2003, during which time considerable livestock vaccination was conducted. Livestock cases have been reported since 2004, and many livestock carcasses were obtained during the 2006 wildlife outbreak (Figure 2). However, local Maasai communities attributed these deaths to starvation, and diagnostic material was not available for conﬁrmation. Human Cases Hospital records of anthrax-infected humans were typiﬁed by sporadic reports of nonfatal cutaneous anthrax from a few localities (Figure 1, panel A; Figure 2). However, small-scale household questionnaire surveys conducted in villages where livestock and wildlife anthrax outbreaks had occurred indicated several cases in persons who had eaten affected livestock carcasses (50% case-fatality rate, 4 deaths and 8 cases in 7,538 persons). Clinical signs included diarrhea and swollen abdomen (consistent with ascites), which are features of gastrointestinal anthrax. Serologic Patterns Wildlife Seroprevalence patterns of sampled wildlife varied widely and showed differences among species and populations (Figure 3). Overall seroprevalence was lower in wildlife populations in Ngorongoro than in Serengeti (p<0.001). Seroprevalence was consistently high in wild carnivores (90% and 57% overall seropositivity in Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater lions, respectively, and 87% seropositivity in Serengeti spotted hyenas) and did not show any signiﬁcant year-to-year variation, e.g., in years of known outbreaks (p>0.05). Age seroprevalence in Serengeti lions indicated a high frequency of infection, 390 Emerging Infectious Diseases • www.cdc.gov/eid • Vol. 17, No. 3, March 2011