• Nationality :   British

• Alma mater

  • University of Connecticut

  • Tufts University Veterinary School

• Occupation :  Conservationist  /   Veterinarian  /   Wildlife expert

• Years active :   1996–2002

• Awards :   Global 500 Roll of Honour

Annelisa Marcelle Kilbourn (27 June 1967 – 2 November 2002) was a British conservationist, veterinarian and wildlife expert. She worked in Malaysia guarding free-ranging elephants and orangutans and protecting Sumatran rhinoceros and in Madagascar studying ring-tailed lemurs. Kilbourn went on to work at the Lincoln Park Zoo and Shedd Aquarium in Chicago. In Gabon, she established that wild gorillas were susceptible to death of the Ebola virus and could be transmitted to humans through hunting and eating infected species. In 2003, Kilbourn was posthumously elected to the Global 500 Roll of Honour by the United Nations Environment Programme.

Early life and education

On 27 June 1967,[1] Kilbourn was a British citizen born in Zürich, Switzerland.[2][3] She was the daughter of Hans and Barry Kilbourn;[1][4] her father was working as a chemist in Zürich.[5] Kilbourn has one sister.[6] She went on to reside in Belgium before relocating to Westport, Connecticut in 1981.[5] Kilbourn was fluent in seven languages:[6] Dutch, English, French, German, Malgache, Malay and Swahili.[5] She wanted to be a veterinary from when she turned either six or seven and while at high school, volunteered at Westport's Nature Centre, regularly taking wounded animals home for treatment.[5] Kilbourn studied environmental biology and French at the University of Connecticut,[5][7] which she graduated from in 1990.[8][4] Her adviser discerned her academic ability and encouraged her to apply for an East African internship.[5] In 1996, Kilbourn graduated from Tufts University Veterinary School with a veterinary medicine degree.[5][7]

Career

Following her graduation from Tufts University, she got a Wildlife Health Fellowship from the Wildlife Conservation Society to study orangutansin Sabah, Malaysia.[2][3][7] Between 1996 from 1998, Kilbourn helped to guard and relocate free-ranging elephants and orangutans and to protect the 30 remaining Sumatran rhinoceros.[5][7] She also studied ring-tailed lemurs in Madagascar,[6] and helped orangutans trapped in the Malaysian rain forest by agricultural development.[9] When Kilbourn completed the project, she worked at the Lincoln Park Zoo and Shedd Aquarium in Chicago as part of a post-doctorate programme from 1998 to 2000.[2][6][10] At Shedd, she put on aquatic gear to assist in the tending of ailing dolphins and whales and was instrumental in forming the aquarium's Amazon Rising exhibit guiding visitors "through a misty river-basin forest where piranhas, arowanas and other species peer through lush greenery".[6] Kilbourn went on to accept a permanent post at the Shedd but did work with the SOS Rhino project to save the rhinoceros in Borneo and with the Wildlife Conservation Society in Central Africa.[2][7]

While working in Central Africa, she deployed modern technology such as global positioning systems and computerised tracking systems in the study of wildlife navigation. Kilbourn also spoke in French to programme software to enable squads to compile data on hand-held devices. She frequently lived in the jungle consuming peanut butter for protein and sometimes used generators at the camps she set up or was frequently unable to contact the outside world for weeks.[5] Kilbourn established on-site laboratories at multiple locations for trained project individuals to conduct analysis of biological samples. In May 2001, she flew to Gabon to begin part of the Wildlife Conservation Society's gorilla health evaluation and monitoring programme, developing protocols with multiple organisations working in gorilla conservation to try to prevent transmittable diseases between animals and humans.[3]

In October 2001, while still in Gabon, she and other project leaders were asked to venture to Congo and northern Gabon to investigate an outbreak of the tropical Ebola virus, which killed humans, at least 30 gorillas and 12 chimpanzees in villages close to the border with Congo and Gabon.[3][8] Kilbourn collected samples of blood and tissue from deceased gorillas in the jungle and determined wild gorillas were susceptible to death of the Ebola virus as well as finding out the disease could be transmitted to humans through hunting and the consumption of infected species.[5][7] She also found that hunting from indigenous population also contributed to the decline in the gorilla population and attempted to persuade the population to not consume ape meat.[3]

Death

On 2 November 2002,[4] while the plane she was travelling in was about to land in an animal reserve in the Lope Nature Preserve in Gabon,[5][7] she was killed when it crashed.[2] Three others in the plane were unhurt.[5] A memorial service for Kilbourn was held at Bronx Zooo n the afternoon on 15 November 2002.[4]

Legacy

The Wildlife Conservation Society setup a memorial fund in Kilbourn's name to assist veterinarians in other countries.[4] In June 2003, she was posthumously elected to the Global 500 Roll of Honour by the United Nations Environment Programme at a ceremony in Beirut, Lebanon "for her exceptional work in protecting the environment."[10]

References

• a b "Kilbourn, Annelisa (1967–2002)". Dictionary of Women Worldwide: 25,000 Women Through the Ages. 2006. Archived from the original on 21 April 2021. Retrieved 21 April 2021 – via Encyclopedia.com.
• Lewis, Paul (5 November 2002). "Annelisa M. Kilbourn, 35, Dies; Tied Ebola to Death of Gorillas". The New York Times.   [ [HN020U][GDrive]  ]
• a b c d e "Annelisa Kilbourn; Obituary". The Times. 9 November 2002. p. 48. Retrieved 21 April 2021 – via Gale Academic OneFile.
• a b c d e "Wildlife Scientist Annelisa Kilbourn". Newsday. Associated Press. 10 November 2002. p. A59. ProQuest 279560835. Archived from the original on 26 April 2021. Retrieved 21 April 2021 – via ProQuest.
• M. Hamilton, Anne (24 November 2002). "She Devoted Her Life to Wildlife". Hartford Courant.  [ [HN020X][GDrive]  and  [HN020X][GDrive] ]

1. Conservation medicine.       [LOCAL SAVED PDF : [HP00BQ][GDrive]]

   1. • Deem SL, Kilbourn AM, Wolfe ND, Cook RA, Karesh WB.

      • Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2000;916:370-7. doi: 10.1111/j.1749-6632.2000.tb05315.x.   /   PMID: 11193649

2. Rococo study: a real-world evaluation of an over-the-counter medicine in acute cough (a multicentre, randomised, controlled study).

   1. • Birring SS, Brew J, Kilbourn A, Edwards V, Wilson R, Morice AH.

      • BMJ Open. 2017 Jan 16;7(1):e014112. doi: 10.1136/bmjopen-2016-014112.   /   PMID: 28093442 Free PMC article. Clinical Trial.   

3. Wild primate populations in emerging infectious disease research: the missing link?     [Local saved PDF :  [HP00BC][GDrive]  ]

   1. • Wolfe ND, Escalante AA, Karesh WB, Kilbourn A, Spielman A, Lal AA.

      • Emerg Infect Dis. 1998 Apr-Jun;4(2):149-58. doi: 10.3201/eid0402.980202.   /   PMID: 9621185 Free PMC article. Review.

4. The phylogenetic and evolutionary history of a novel alpha-globin-type gene in orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus).

   1. • Steiper ME, Wolfe ND, Karesh WB, Kilbourn AM, Bosi EJ, Ruvolo M.

      • Infect Genet Evol. 2006 Jul;6(4):277-86. doi: 10.1016/j.meegid.2005.08.001. Epub 2005 Sep 19.   /   PMID: 16172024

5. A new lipid formulation of low dose ibuprofen shows non-inferiority to high dose standard ibuprofen: the FLARE study (flaring arthralgia relief evaluation in episodic flaring knee pain) - a randomised double-blind study.

   1. • Bierma-Zeinstra SMA, Brew J, Stoner K, Wilson R, Kilbourn A, Conaghan PG.

      • Osteoarthritis Cartilage. 2017 Dec;25(12):1942-1951. doi: 10.1016/j.joca.2017.09.002. Epub 2017 Sep 9.   /   PMID: 28899844 Free article. Clinical Trial.

6. DNA analysis indicates that Asian elephants are native to Borneo and are therefore a high priority for conservation.

   1. • Fernando P, Vidya TN, Payne J, Stuewe M, Davison G, Alfred RJ, Andau P, Bosi E, Kilbourn A, Melnick DJ.

      • PLoS Biol. 2003 Oct;1(1):E6. doi: 10.1371/journal.pbio.0000006. Epub 2003 Aug 18.   /   PMID: 12929206 Free PMC article.

7. Screening for simian foamy virus infection by using a combined antigen Western blot assay: evidence for a wide distribution among Old World primates and identification of four new divergent viruses.

   1. • Hussain AI, Shanmugam V, Bhullar VB, Beer BE, Vallet D, Gautier-Hion A, Wolfe ND, Karesh WB, Kilbourn AM, Tooze Z, Heneine W, Switzer WM.

      • Virology. 2003 May 10;309(2):248-57. doi: 10.1016/s0042-6822(03)00070-9.   /   PMID: 12758172 Free article.

8. Catastrophic ape decline in western equatorial Africa.

   1. • Walsh PD, Abernethy KA, Bermejo M, Beyers R, De Wachter P, Akou ME, Huijbregts B, Mambounga DI, Toham AK, Kilbourn AM, Lahm SA, Latour S, Maisels F, Mbina C, Mihindou Y, Obiang SN, Effa EN, Starkey MP, Telfer P, Thibault M, Tutin CE, White LJ, Wilkie DS.

      • Nature. 2003 Apr 10;422(6932):611-4. doi: 10.1038/nature01566. Epub 2003 Apr 6.   /   PMID: 12679788

9. The impact of ecological conditions on the prevalence of malaria among orangutans.

   1. • Wolfe ND, Karesh WB, Kilbourn AM, Cox-Singh J, Bosi EJ, Rahman HA, Prosser AT, Singh B, Andau M, Spielman A.

      • Vector Borne Zoonotic Dis. 2002 Summer;2(2):97-103. doi: 10.1089/153036602321131896.   /   PMID: 12653303

10. Sylvatic transmission of arboviruses among Bornean orangutans.

    1. • Wolfe ND, Kilbourn AM, Karesh WB, Rahman HA, Bosi EJ, Cropp BC, Andau M, Spielman A, Gubler DJ.

       • Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2001 May-Jun;64(5-6):310-6. doi: 10.4269/ajtmh.2001.64.310.   /   PMID: 11463123

11. Wild animal mortality monitoring and human Ebola outbreaks, Gabon and Republic of Congo, 2001-2003.

    1. • Rouquet P, Froment JM, Bermejo M, Kilbourn A, Karesh W, Reed P, Kumulungui B, Yaba P, Délicat A, Rollin PE, Leroy EM.

       • Emerg Infect Dis. 2005 Feb;11(2):283-90. doi: 10.3201/eid1102.040533.   /   PMID: 15752448 Free PMC article.

12. Health evaluation of free-ranging and semi-captive orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus pygmaeus) in Sabah, Malaysia.

    1. • Kilbourn AM, Karesh WB, Wolfe ND, Bosi EJ, Cook RA, Andau M.

       • J Wildl Dis. 2003 Jan;39(1):73-83. doi: 10.7589/0090-3558-39.1.73.   /   PMID: 12685070

       • Between 1996 and 1998, 84 free-ranging orangutans captured for translocation, underwent a complete health evaluation. Analogous data were gathered from 60 semi-captive orangutans in Malaysia. Baseline hematology and serology; vitamin, mineral and pesticide levels; and resu …

13. Serum antigen 85 levels in adjunct testing for active mycobacterial infections in orangutans.

    1. • Kilbourn AM, Godfrey HP, Cook RA, Calle PP, Bosi EJ, Bentley-Hibbert SI, Huygen K, Andau M, Ziccardi M, Karesh WB.

       • J Wildl Dis. 2001 Jan;37(1):65-71. doi: 10.7589/0090-3558-37.1.65.   /   PMID: 11272506

       • Antigen 85 (Ag85) complex proteins are major secretory products of actively growing mycobacteria, and measurement of serum Ag85 could provide a method for determining active mycobacterial infections that was not dependent on host immunity. Serum Ag85 was measured by dot-im …

14. The population genetics of the alpha-2 globin locus of orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus).

    1. • Steiper ME, Wolfe ND, Karesh WB, Kilbourn AM, Bosi EJ, Ruvolo M.

       • J Mol Evol. 2005 Mar;60(3):400-8. doi: 10.1007/s00239-004-0201-x.   /   PMID: 15871050

       • Furthermore, a single amino acid variant, found in both the Bornean and the Sumatran orangutan subspecies, was associated with different alternative synonymous variants in each subspecies, suggesting that the allele may have spread separately through the two subspecies aft …

OBJECTIVES

• • • Promote the health, well-being and survival of captive and free-ranging wild animals and their ecosystems.

EMPLOYMENT

• SOS Rhino Borneo, Malaysia & Chicago Wildlife Veterinarian & Field Scientist 2000- present
  • • Implement insitu & exsitu projects to promote the breeding, protection & survival of the Sumatran rhinoceros in Sabah, Malaysia. Provide training & employment for field research assistants, animal husbandry & clinical support. Oversee masters’ student research & transfer of technology to on site veterinarian. Conduct reproductive evaluation of rhinos in captivity involving blood sample collection protocols, ultrasonography & behavioral observations. Fieldwork includes GPS, GIS & photo trap training.
• Wildlife Conservation Society, African & New York Consultant Field/ Wildlife Veterinarian 2001- present
  • • Implement, support & conduct research on the health of free ranging wild populations of great apes in Gabon, Congo and CAR. Standardizing health evaluation protocols & the transfer of technology for the implementation of zoonoitic disease prevention programs for field staff, researchers and tourists involved. Computerize medical record keeping & sample data. Training staff on diagnostic equipment & techniques.
• John G. Shedd Aquarium, Chicago Associate Veterinarian 2000
  • • Clinical management of thousands of species ranging from Primates and Cetaceans to Sygnathids and Cephalopods. Management of new species to the facility and support during the development of a major new Amazon exhibit. Teaching veterinary students and visiting veterinarians during their rotations through the aquarium. Conducting continuing education programs for technical support staff. Consulting on several field research projects involving both terrestrial and aquatic species and their environments.
• Lincoln Park Zoo, Zoological & Aquatic Animal Medicine Internship 1998-2000
• John G. Shedd Aquarium, Chicago
  • • Full involvement in all aspects of clinical medicine, antemortem diagnosis & treatment, preventative medicine, nutrition & surgery initially under direct supervision of staff veterinarians at the zoo & aquarium. Providing educational presentations, implementing new & participating in ongoing research & conservation projects.
• Sepilok Orangutan Rehabilitation Center, Malaysia Wildlife Health Fellow Researcher & Veterinarian 1996-1998
• Wildlife Conservation Society, New York
  • • Provided medical care to wild free-ranging animals during capture & translocation procedures. Provided medical care to orphaned or injured wildlife at the center. Conducted research on the health of free ranging wild populations of elephants & orangutans & their captive counterparts. Helped implement preventative medical protocols and computerize medical record keeping. Training staff on diagnostic equipment and techniques.

EDUCATION

• Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine, 1996 Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine, MA
• B.Sc. (Ecology & Environmental Biology, major) University of Connecticut, CT
• B.A. (French major, Anthropology minor) 1990
• Wildlife Ecology & Management Program, 1989 School for Field Studies, Kenya

RESEARCH

• Sumatran Rhino population demographics insitu and Reproductive Evaluation of exsitu Sumatran Rhinoceros in Sabah, Malaysia, with EJ Bosi (University of Malaysia Sabah), Nan Schaffer, DVM, SOS Rhino and Sabah Wildlife Department.
• Evaluating reproduction in the endangered Australian lungfish using ultra-sound and hormonal analysis, with MG Greenwell, A Feldman and T Robot. John G. Shedd Aquarium Conservation programs
• Health Evaluation of Wild Orangutan in Sabah, Malaysia, with WB Karesh (WCS) and EJ Bosi (Sabah Wildlife Department). Wildlife Health Fellowship, WCS & Morris Animal Foundation.
• Translocation and Health Evaluation of Wild Elephants in Sabah, Malaysia. With EJ Bosi (Sabah Wildlife Department) and WB Karesh (WCS). Wildlife Conservation Society Wildlife health Fellowship.
• The Potential Use Ag85 Levels for the Detection Mycobacterial Diseases in Orangutans. With H Godfrey (NYmedical college), PP Calle and WB Karesh (WCS). Wildlife Health Fellow (WCS), NIH, Belgium National research Foundation.
• A comparative study of disease among wild and captive populations of lemur species in Madagascar, 5-8/93. Supervisors: C. Sedgwick, DVM, M. Walters, DVM, A. Jolly Ph.D. NIH Training grant, TUSVM international & wildlife programs.
• Less invasive techniques for genetic diversity studies in rhinoceros and wild dog. South Africa, 5-8/94 Supervisors: A. Warren, DVM, Ph.D., A. Maddock, Ph.D. Tufts International Veterinary Medicine. Research Grant,

PUBLICATIONS/ ILLUSTRATIONS/ POSTERS/ ARTICLES

• Serum Antigen 85 Levels in Adjunct Testing for Active Mycobacterial Infections in Orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus). AM Kilbourn, HP Godfrey, RA Cook, PP Calle, EJ Bosi, SI Bentley-Hibert, K Huygen, M Andau, WB Karesh . Journal of Wildlife Diseases, 37 (1), 2001. Pp.65-71.
• Disease evaluation of free-ranging orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus), Malaysia. AM Kilbourn, WB Karesh, EJ Bosi, RA Cook, M Andau, NDWolfe. Abstract in: Proceedings of the 1998 AAZV Conference
• Conservation Medicine. S Deem, AM Kilbourn, N Wolfe, RA Cook, WB Karesh . Tropical Veterinary Diseases: Control and prevention in the context of the new world order. E James A. House, K Kocan, EP Gibbs, 370-377 Annal of the New York Acadamy of Science Vol 916.
• Wild primate populations as sentinels for emerging viruses: arboviral serology among orangutans and humans in Sabah, north Borneo. ND Wolfe, BC Cropp, AM Kilbourn, WB Karesh, EJ Bosi, M Andau, HA Raham, DJ Gubler. Submitted to 1998 American Society of tropical medicine and public health.
• Circulating alpha-tocopherol and retinol in free-ranging and zoo ungulates. 1998 ES Dierenfeld, WB Karesh, BL Raphael, RA Cook, AM Kilbourn, EJ Bosi, M Andau.
• Orangutan nest counts using a helicopter at Tabin and Sepilok wildlife Reserves, Sabah Malaysia. 1998 EJ Bosi, AM Kilbourn, WB Karesh, M Andau, E Tambing and J Komiji. Proceedings of the 1998 Great Ape Conference, Sarawak.
• Translocation of Wild Orangutan (Pongo pygmaeus) in Sabah Malaysia. AM Kilbourn, WB Karesh, EJ Bosi, M Andau Abstract in: Proceedings of the 1997 AAZV Conference
• Translocation of Wild Elephants (Elephus maximus) in Sabah Malaysia. EJ Bosi, AM Kilbourn, WB Karesh, M Andau Abstract in: Proceedings of the 1997 AAZV Conference
• Wild primate population in emerging infectious disease research: The missing Link? 1998. N Wolfe, A Escalante, WB Karesh, AM Kilbourn, A Speilman, AA Lal. Emerging Infectious Diseases 4(2).
• An epidemiological survey of wild populations of ring-tailed lemur (Lemur catta) and verreaux's sifaka (Propithecus verreauxi): Implications for conservation efforts. 1995. A Kilbourn. Abstract in: Environmental changes in Madagascar, ed. BD Patterson, SM Goldman, JD Sedgwick, pg. 40/107.
• Illustrations for teaching manuals, “National Council for Excellence in Zoo Animal Management” pamphlet & article on the equine guttural pouch (P Bolton), Designs for club T-shirts & rain forest exhibit at CTMuseum of Natural History.

PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS & STUDENT ORGANIZATIONS

• Veterinarians for Global Solutions Inc. Board member. Wildlife conservation, development, medicine & research.
• Tufts Wildlife Club Co-President. Organized wildlife conservation & exotic animal medicine conferences, wet labs, fund raising, developing &/or volunteering for projects involving national & international wildlife. Field research.
• Tufts Colic and Neonatal Team, Students care of ICU patients.
• Member: AVMA, AAZV, WDA, WAWV, WRAM, NWRA, WCS, WWF
  • • Conferences: AAZV 1993,’94, ‘95, ‘97, ‘98, ‘99, ‘00. AAHA 1991, 1998. NWRA 1994. WRAM 1995, ZSSA 1994

PERSONAL/ LANGUAGES/ CERTIFICATION

• Newspaper Articles/Video:
  • • Rescue of Besieged Orangutans Aids Research, 1997. The New York Times, USA
    • Walking on the Wild Side, 1997. The Sunday Mail, Australia.
    • Operation Jumbo Drop, 1997. Sabah Daily Express, Malaysia.
    • Animal Manners on Tour in Malaysia, (Dieren maneiren op Reis)1997, Video, Holland.
• Languages: Fluent: English, French & Dutch. Competent: Spanish, German. Conversation: Malagasy, Malay, Kiswahili.
• Born: Switzerland. Citizen: British. Raised in Europe, Schooled in Belgium, University in the USA. Legal Alien.
• Certified PADI SCUBA Diver. Six years martial arts Tai Kwon Do.

TRAPPED within a few forested acres on the South Pacific island of Borneo, an orangutan blustered as wildlife researchers tightened their circle around her, then she retreated angrily up a tree. Many hours later, the orangutan crept near the ground, close enough for a marksman to shoot a tranquilizer dart into her thigh, and she tumbled into brush that had been piled up to cushion her fall. When she opened her eyes again, she was in a wildlife reserve with room to roam.

The rescue, described by [Dr. Annelisa Marcelle Kilbourn (born 1967)], a veterinarian with the Wildlife Conservation Society, was one of 58 she directed in the last year in Sabah, a Malaysian region on Borneo. During an interview at the society's offices at the Bronx Zoo, Dr. Kilbourn said that such patient, sweaty missions are necessary because the relentless clearing of land for plantations on Borneo is driving orangutans onto virtual islands of rain forest too small to support their population.

But the rescue project, carried out with the Sabah Wildlife Department, is aimed at helping more than the trapped orangutans. Medical examinations by [Dr. Annelisa Marcelle Kilbourn (born 1967)] before the animals were released are giving researchers their first look at the physiology of wild orangutans, information that will help in managing the semi-wild animals held at rehabilitation centers and those made homeless by the illegal pet trade.

Blood and fecal samples are still being analyzed, said [Dr. William Bamberger Karesh (born 1955)], director of the field veterinary program for the Wildlife Conservation Society, but early results show that reintroduction of captive orangutans into the forests should be done far from wild populations. That is because the orangutans that have been in close contact with people commonly are infected with hepatitis and tuberculosis, Dr. Karesh said, while wild orangutans appear to be free of them.

Dr. Kilbourn's work fills a crucial gap in orangutan research, Dr. Karesh said. ''People have been studying wild orangutans for 30 years,'' he said, ''but they've been looking at behavior. In all that time, no one took a blood sample.''

Orangutan populations have been squeezed on several fronts: wild animals are losing their habitats, and many are killed or injured by hunters and by workers defending plantation crops. Thousands of females have been killed so their offspring could be captured and sold as pets, and about half of those captured infants are thought to have died in transit.

The demand for orangutan pets was strong in Asia, especially Taiwan, in the 1980's and early 1990's. Marcus J. Phipps, a World Wildlife Fund official based in Taiwan and a former head of the Orangutan Foundation Taiwan, said that a children's television show there in the late 1980's called ''The Naughty Family'' inadvertently contributed to the problem because it featured an orangutan as a cute companion, which helped to create demand for such pets.

Crackdowns on the pet trade since then have slowed it considerably throughout Asia. But Mr. Phipps said that most of the orangutans shipped to Taiwan in the late 1980's and early 1990's had probably died.

That has contributed to an overall population decline estimated at 30 percent to 50 percent in the last decade. While wild orangutans, the only great ape in Asia, were once found throughout Southeast Asia, a World Wildlife Fund report estimates that they now live on only 2 percent of their original range. Fewer than 30,000 are left, all of them on Borneo -- which is divided among Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei -- and Sumatra, part of Indonesia.

Recent fire and smoke damage has been widespread in the region, killing some orangutans and other wildlife and damaging habitats, according to the World Wildlife Fund. But [Dr. William Bamberger Karesh (born 1955)] said that smaller animals would be more vulnerable to the smoke than the orangutans and that the population in Sabah had not been affected.

Another focus of Dr. Kilbourn's work in Sabah has been to teach Malaysians at the Sepilok Wildlife Center how to rehabilitate injured wildlife and pets that have been confiscated or turned in.

Sometimes orphaned or injured orangutans are taken to the rehabilitation center after attacks by plantation workers, [Dr. Annelisa Marcelle Kilbourn (born 1967)] said. The workers are not necessarily intending to hurt the apes, she said, but are trying to keep them from eating crops.

''The only thing they've got to round them up with are machetes,'' she said. ''So by the end of the day, the mother can be badly hurt or dead.''

Dr. Karesh said that the deaths of adult females were devastating for the orangutan population because they produced young at a slow rate. It takes 10 years or more for females to start reproducing, and they each produce only four or five offspring in a normal life span of 40 years.

The wildlife workers are winning the trust of Sabah residents, Dr. Kilbourn said, so more plantations are asking the rehabilitation center to rescue trapped orangutans instead of trying to handle the problem themselves.

The rehabilitated animals at Sepilok are semi-captives, [Dr. William Bamberger Karesh (born 1955)] said, able to get food at the center but encouraged to migrate into the surrounding forest reserve.

Once they reach full size -- about 200 pounds for males and half that for females -- orangutans can push people around, [Dr. Annelisa Marcelle Kilbourn (born 1967)] said, which explains why people who buy infant orangutans as pets abandon them after they grow. At the rehabilitation center, everything is double-locked in an effort to keep out the orangutans because they can figure out locks or pop padlocks open with sheer strength.

Dr. Karesh said some rehabilitated orangutans from Sepilok had been reintroduced into areas of Borneo that did not have natural wild populations, as have animals in Indonesia, including some former pets returned from other countries. ''They are naturally solitary animals, so that makes reintroductions easier,'' he said.

Dr. Kilbourn will return to Sabah soon to work with a Malaysian veterinarian who will be taking over the rescue and rehabilitation work.

Annelisa M. Kilbourn, a British veterinarian and wildlife expert, who established that gorillas can die of the deadly Ebola virus, was killed Saturday when the light plane she was flying in crashed in the Lope Nature Preserve in the Central African nation of Gabon. She was 35.

Working for the Wildlife Conservation Society, which announced her death yesterday from its headquarters at the Bronx Zoo, Dr. Kilbourn was investigating last year's Ebola outbreak in that country and its relationship to the indigenous gorilla population.

Earlier this year, Dr. Kilbourn established for the first time that Ebola is a serious threat to wild gorillas as well as to humans when she found dead specimens in the jungle and found that the disease had killed them, the society said.

Her findings had important implications for the preservation of Africa's primates as well as for the spread of the disease among humans. Scientists had already noted that an earlier outbreak of Ebola in the same area in 1996 had led to a sharp decline in the gorilla population and now they knew why.

They also now knew that Ebola as well as predatory hunting by humans, is one of the reasons gorillas are fast disappearing from Africa's forests.

Dr. Kilbourn's discovery also made it increasingly important to protect the major concentration of gorillas, believed to be the largest left in the world, living in the nearby Odzala National Park, about 100 kilometers away over the border in Congo, by controlling access to them by humans and animals that might be carrying the virus. Before her death Dr. Kilbourn had herself been in charge of protecting the health of these animals.

Finally, the knowledge that gorillas as well as chimpanzees and monkeys are vulnerable to Ebola implied that one of the ways the disease spreads among humans is through the hunting and eating of infected primates.

Ebola is a poorly understood tropical disease that erupts from time to time in various parts of Africa and for which there is no cure. The disease can cause internal organs to liquefy; about 70 percent of its human victims die.

Annelisa Marcelle Kilbourn was born June 27, 1967, in Zurich. A British citizen, she received bachelor's degrees in ecology and in environmental biology at the University of Connecticut in 1990 and graduated in veterinary medicine from Tufts University in 1996.

From 1996 to 1998 Dr. Kilbourn worked in Malaysia with a Wildlife Health Fellowship from the Wildlife Conservation Society, helping protect free ranging orangutans and elephants.

Upon completion of this project she took a two-year position at the Lincoln Park Zoo and Shedd Aquarium in Chicago. Later she accepted a permanent position at the Shedd but also worked with the SOS Rhino project to save Borneo's rhinos, and with the Wildlife Conservation Society in Central Africa.

Dr. Kilbourn is survived by her parents, Hans and Barry Kilbourn of Norwalk, Conn., and by her sister, Kirsten Kilbourn of South Windsor, Conn.

 Most of us have relegated our personal heroes to comic books or movie screens, but the friends, colleagues and loved ones of Annelisa Marcelle Kilbourn found their ultimate role model far closer to home. “If there was anyone I knew personally I could say was a hero to me it was Annelisa,” wrote animal keeper Mike Skidmore of Lincoln Park Zoo "She did so much of what most of us only dreamed of doing. I’m glad she was doing what she believed in and loved.”

Annelisa lived, loved and died saving captive and free-ranging wild animals and their ecosystems. Devoting her life to a career she considered a natural extension of herself, Annelisa understood and accepted the inherent risks of her profession. Tragically killed the afternoon of Saturday, November 2nd in a small plane accident in the Lope Nature Preserve in Gabon, Annelisa will be sorely missed by all. And for those lucky enough to have personally known and worked with her, Annelisa's indomitable spirit and inexhaustible passion will outshine even her renowned contributions.

If Annelisa's headline grabbing confirmation earlier this year that gorillas can succumb to Ebola outbreaks changed the very course of primate studies and virology, the work was merely a natural extension of an entire life successfully devoted to her passions. Born in Zurich, Switzerland on June 27, 1967, Annelisa embodied a spirit of internationalism and adventure from the beginning. A British citizen, raised in Europe and educated in America, Annelisa trained as a pilot and became a black belt in Tai Kwon Do even before majoring in ecology and environmental biology at the University of Connecticut in 1990. Participation in the Kenyan Wildlife Ecology & Management Program merely got Annelisa's feet wet for field work, which continued enthusiastically throughout her graduate studies and into her professional career. Download her CV here [PDF : [HI005J][GDrive] ].

Arriving in Sabah, Malaysia in 1996, Annelisa studied the orangutans of Borneo while based at the Sepilok rehabilitation center. During the course of her two year mission, Dr. Kilbourn and her wildlife ranger team relocated more than 140 wild orangutans from dangerous forest pockets to the better protected wildlife forest reserve. Her field work also involved orangutan research and identification through the routine collection and analysis of blood, hair and feces - Then a groundbreaking approach, now considered standard procedure. Her team also studied primate parasites, and undertook malaria diagnosis and treatment. To further supplement her identification and tracking efforts, Annelisa introduced orangutan tattooing and microchip implantation, creating an unprecedented record of animal activity in the region. Following orangutan release back into the wild, Dr. Kilbourn used helicopter observation to study and monitor orangutan nest and population densities.Returning to the States and receiving her doctorate in veterinary medicine from Tufts University in 1996, she immediately returned to field work.

Devoting herself to with the hands-on protection of free-ranging elephants in Malaysia, Annelisa and her new wildlife ranger team rapidly relocated 14 trapped elephants in an exercise that perfected capture and tranquilization techniques. The rescued elephants were genetically tested before release back into the forests, an analysis that revealed the species to be indigenous to Borneo (contrary to prior speculation). Such findings not only shed new light on the elephant species itself, but proved vital for efforts used to ensure their continued survival.

Dr. Kilbourn's work with endangered species continued with the Sumatran rhinos at Sepilok. Endangered to the point of virtual extinction, fewer than 30 individual rhinos are confined to three tiny habitats in the northeastern part of Borneo. Applying the techniques and personal expertise acquired with her orangutan field work, Annelisa further honed her craft in an unprecedented effort to rescue the rarest and most difficult to locate animals on the planet. Few argue that Annelisa's pioneering work is helping to save the species from extinction.

Annelisa's post-doctoral odyssey continued with an internship at Chicago's Lincoln Park Zoo and Shedd Aquarium. Accepting an associate veterinarian position at the Shedd, she rapidly honed her professional skills and acquired an inimitable reputation as a woman capable of accomplishing whatever she set out to do. Restless when separated from her cherished field work, Dr. Kilbourn accepted a field scientist position in 2000 with SOS Rhino, a US-based non-profit, non-governmental conservation organization devoted to saving endangered rhinos, including the highly jeopardized Sumatran.

Returning to Sabah after an absence of two years, Annelisa established her ranger team and got right to work. She began with field surveys to determine population size and density, demographics, nutrition and risk information.Annelisa's skills as a scientist and researcher were matched only by her capacity to network with professional colleagues, government officials and native helpers; she even developed a computerized wildlife navigation tracking system to facilitate communication and animal localization. She trained her ranger team to identify rhinos in the Tabin wildlife reserve, fully utilizing everything from computerized GPS systems to photo trap cameras. Her scientific and technical expertise were supplemented by her passion for basic field work: Finding fresh rhino hoof prints of unrecorded animals brought several animals, including a mother and a calf, into their sites and onto the protection agenda.

Dr. Kilbourn was also adroit with animal breeding techniques, helping to mate the last pair of rhinos at Sepilok. Her reproductive efforts included complete reproductive evaluations of the male and female, along with the training of local veterinarians and staff members on the basics of reproductive testing, care and ongoing management. Her field research, in conjunction with hard work at the Cincinnati Zoo, and many scientists resulted in the first captive born Sumatran rhino in over a century of efforts.

Working with SOS Rhino, Annelisa also did consulting work for the Wildlife Conservation Society in Africa. While implementing and conducting research on the health of free ranging great ape populations, Annelisa revealed that primates can actually succumb to the Ebola virus. This remarkable discovery simultaneously helped explain viral transmission to humans and dwindling ape populations in Gabon, and made Annelisa's work front page news worldwide. To Annelisa, however, celebrity meant nothing, so long as she could do what she loved, and live the life she always dreamed of, that of helping endangered animals and protecting their habitats. For everyone who ever knew or worked with her, these tasks could never be separated from Annelisa herself: An international woman who never knew or accepted boundaries, she worshipped the natural world and considered herself an organic extension of it. Everything about Annelisa was spontaneous and natural, yet grounded in a sense of total commitment, strident professionalism and urgent ecological responsibility.

Dr. Kilbourn's desire was to return to Sabah in 2003 to expand her rhino survey work in the Danum Valley conservation area.

Dr. Annelisa Marcelle Kilbourn is survived by her parents, Hans and Barry Kilbourn, and her sister, Kirsten Kilbourn.

SOS Rhino has established memorial fund in Annelisa’s name to help continue her work dedicated to the survival of the Sumatran rhinos in Malaysia. Contributions can be made by clicking the button below or mailed directly to SOS Rhino 680 N. Lake Shore Drive, Chicago, IL 60611. attn: Annelisa Fund. 312.222.0440, fax 312.222.0990. Inquires emailed to info@sosrhino.org.  [...]

Our researchers, scientists and field staff are using the latest technology available to coordinate the survey of rhinos in one of the last remaining preserves in Borneo. Tabin Wildlife preserve is located on the southeastern segment of the island of Borneo. It covers over 120,000 hectares . The terrain is quite rugged, complete with exotic animals like the sun bears, wild boars, insects, arduous geography and wet areas.

The initial field research is focused on determining the demographics of the population of Sumatran rhino. At least two base camps are established to facilitate survey works. This includes spore signs, habitat utilization, human and animal contact, etc. 

CyberTracker software has been customized by Dr. Kilbourn to incorporate all pertinent information. 

CyberTraker is an icon-based easy to learn system immediately computerized and associated with a GPS location. 

Handspring Inc. granted 25 units for this specific purpose. Phototrap cameras are placed at strategic locations where signs of rhino have been identified or along trails where passage is highly likely. 

Transfer of this technology among organizations will standardize information and make it readily available. Trained personnel, technology and information will be transferred among areas and organizations so a coordinated effort can continue to expand and address immediate issues.

In May and June, Dr. Annelisa Kilbourn traveled to Gabon to start a gorilla health evaluation and  monitoring program and work with multiple non-governmental organizations to develop human and animal disease transmission prevention protocols associated with gorilla habitats. In the tri-national region of Gabon, the Congo, and the Central African Republic, the rise of tourism associated with the western low-land gorillas occurs in protected and unprotected habitat. Kilbourn and her colleagues believe that tourism should not prove detrimental to the animals or humans involved. 

"Although the African gorilla's relevance to the Sumatran rhino may not be obvious, if one spends a few days on the project, the connection becomes clear," says Kilbourn. Having learned skills and novel technologies from park managers and experienced rangers, Dr. Kilbourn can now transfer techniques gained in the forests of Africa to Asia, where she studies the Sumatran rhino. Field skills are meant to be shared, because they can be used on any species or environment in need of conservation. Remote data collection devices, wildlife censoring, zoonotic disease evaluation, and preventative health programs are not specific to gorillas. Similar issues face these charismatic megaherbivores, and their future depends on collaborative efforts.

A comprehensive health evaluation, consistent among the sites where gorillas live, will allow for long-term health monitoring of this species. The on-site collaborators include the respective countries' wildlife departments (Congo and Gabon) ECOFAC (a French friend of Central African ecosystems) WWF (World Wildlife Fund) and WCS (Wildlife Conservation Society).

In Gabon's capital, Dr. Kilbourn met with Jean-Marc Froment and Conrad Averley from ECOFAC, which helps manage several wildlife-protected areas in Gabon and Congo, to discuss feasibility, logistics, and participants. The ECOFAC team was very interested in promoting the development of the gorilla program. Dr. Kilbourn also conducted several site visits at Odzala, in the Congo, to meet with field researchers and participating eco-guards to discuss bilingual field-friendly sample and data-collection protocols for trial evaluation. The group agreed on the data to be collected, location, and participants. They also agreed to integrate this information electronically into handheld computers called the Palm or Visor, which are used by patrol units and researchers. The software is called CyberTracker.

CyberTracker software on handheld computers allows the group in the field to enter data as they observe animals in the field. The point is to make tracking as universal and exact as possible. When trackers see an elephant, all they have to do is turn on their handheld device, enter their ID, and click on a picture of an elephant. An attachment called a GPS, or global positioning system, records the latitude and longitude of the animal observed. The collected data can then be exported into an Excel spreadsheet for further analysis.

In Odzala, the CyberTracker pilot project collected more than 35,000 observations in the first 18 months.

Kilbourn is now pursuing a grant from the Handspring Foundation so that the staff of SOS Rhino in Borneo can use the new technology to track Sumatran rhinos at the Tabin wildlife preserve.

The Ebola virus that has claimed many human lives in central Africa is also threatening the region's great apes, conservationists say.

More than 80 people have died this year in the outbreak, in the Gabon/Congo-Brazzavile border area.

There are now fears for one of the largest concentrations of western lowland gorillas.

Some scientists believe the virus may have killed thousands of apes in the last few years.

The warning comes from IUCN-The World Conservation Union, which represents 10,000 government and non-government scientists from 180 countries.

Dr William Karesh, of the US Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS), co-chairs the veterinary specialist group of IUCN's Species Survival Commission.

He believes the Ebola outbreak has affected tens of thousands of square kilometres over the last five or six years.

Impact neglected

In that time it has killed hundreds of people, and Dr Karesh says there is "a real possibility" that thousands of great apes have also succumbed.

He said: "For years, many of us have been trying to point out that disease and health (whether wildlife, domestic animals, or human) are critical factors that have to be included in effective conservation planning."

Dr Jean-Christophe Vie, of IUCN's Species Programme, said: "Diseases affecting wildlife have not always been properly taken into account in conservation planning in the past.

"Chimpanzees and gorillas are already endangered, and Ebola adds yet another threat to those already facing these species, such as deforestation and the wild meat trade."

Ebola haemorrhagic fever is described by the World Health Organization as "one of the most virulent viral diseases known, causing death in 50-90% of all clinically ill cases". The virus was confirmed in Congo in December 2002.

Six gorillas, all from one family group which had been followed by researchers for 10 years, were found dead at the time in a sanctuary covering roughly 11,000 square kilometres (4,250 square miles) in north-western Congo, near Gabon.

Local people have been involved in establishing the sanctuary as a protected area to prepare gorillas for the arrival of tourists.

Perilous kinship

At the end of January eight gorilla families were found to have disappeared over the previous two months: conservationists reported what IUCN calls "the quasi-disappearance" of the species from the sanctuary.

IUCN says primates are especially susceptible to many diseases affecting humans, apart from Ebola, because of their close relationship to us.

It says: "The transmission of the virus from the forest near the affected villages follows contact between hunters and the carcasses of great apes.

"Infected hunters have reported eating the dead gorillas and chimpanzees (although it is illegal to do so)."

Several organisations have been working for some years to monitor the health of the region's gorillas. They include WCS, Ecofac (Conservation and Rational Use of Central African Forest Ecosystems), and CIRMF (Primatology Centre, International Medical Research Institute, Gabon).

Dr Karesh said managing the problem was near-impossible because of the region's instability. He urged a programme of Ebola research and prevention.

Lowland gorillas, which are classed as endangered, live in tropical rain forests in the DRC, Congo-Brazzaville, Gabon, Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon, and the Central African Republic.

An epidemic of Ebola hemorrhagic fever in central Africa could, combined with hunting, push Africa's apes close to extinction within the next decade, according to a report published online yesterday in Nature. The enormity of Ebola's impact became clear in January, when researchers found that up to two-thirds of the gorillas in the Lossi sanctuary in the northern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo--600 to 800 animals--had likely fallen to the virus since November. "It is a disaster," says primatologist Magdalena Bermejo of the University of Barcelona, Spain.

Until recently, says ecologist Peter Walsh of Princeton University in New Jersey, experts have believed that ape populations in Gabon and Congo, home to 80% of the world's gorillas and most common chimps, were stable because these countries retain much of their original forest cover. But Walsh suspected that hunting and, in the 1990s, Ebola was having a heavy impact. To quantify the losses in Gabon, Walsh and 22 co-authors from Europe, the United States, and Gabon (including Bermejo) compared a survey of ape nest sites in the early 1980s with survey results from 1998-2002.

The team found that the number of nest sites has fallen drastically, especially close to towns, where demand for bushmeat spurs hunting. Ebola may also be playing a major role: The virus has been detected in ape carcasses after some die-offs, and the survey indicated fewer apes close to human Ebola sites.

In total, ape populations have declined by an estimated 56% in Gabon since 1983. Walsh predicts they could fall another 80% within 3 decades, although "our decline rate is way conservative," he says. Anthropologist Alexander Harcourt of the University of California, Davis, agrees. He had earlier argued that the apes were safe, but things have changed: "It looks more serious than people had been thinking."

The team urges that the status of lowland gorillas and chimps be upgraded from endangered to critically endangered. They also call for immediate actions, including better law enforcement on park boundaries to stop poaching and studies of Ebola dynamics among apes. More than 100 people have died from Ebola in Congo this year. The possibility that ape-to-ape transmission is spreading the virus is "certainly a lead that we need to pay attention to," says Ebola vaccine researcher [Dr. Gary Jan Nabel (born 1953)] of the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.

Introduction

• Foamy viruses (FVs), or Spumaviruses, are exogenous retroviruses present in many healthy mammals, including monkeys and apes (Meiering and Linial, 2001). Among primates, FVs have been isolated from a variety of both Old and New World primates (Meiering and Linial, 2001). About 70–90% of captive-bred, adult nonhuman primates (NHPs) are infected with simian FVs (SFVs) (Meiering and Linial, 2001). However, this seroprevalence is based on screening of only a small number of primate species mostly representing animals used in biomedical research, such as rhesus macaques (MAC), chimpanzees (CPZ), orangutans (PON), baboons (BAB), and African green monkeys (AGM) (Meiering and Linial, 2001). While only limited information is available on the presence of SFV in captive NHPs, even less is known about the prevalence of SFV in wild-caught animals.
• The SFV genome is organized similar to other complex simian retroviruses and consists of gag, polymerase (pol), and envelope (env) genes flanked by long terminal repeats (LTRs). In Western blot (WB) analysis, seroreactivity in SFV-infected primates is consistently detected to the Gag p68/71 precursor proteins and is thus considered to be a diagnostic marker of infection Hahn et al 1994, Schweizer et al 1995. However, the Gag proteins from apes and monkeys share only about 60% amino acid identity and are only weakly cross-reactive in WB assays Hahn et al 1994, Herchenroder et al 1994. Thus, serologic WB testing for SFV antibodies in monkeys and apes, as well as humans exposed to these primates, requires the use of two tests—one that contains antigen from an African green monkey (SFVAGM) and the other containing antigen from a chimpanzee (SFVCPZ), which would allow detection of antibodies to both the Old World monkey or the ape SFV variants, respectively (Schweizer et al., 1995). Other serologic methods such as immunoflouresence or radioimmunoprecipitation have also been used for the detection of SFV antibodies Herchenroder et al 1994, Khan et al 1999. In addition to serologic testing, PCR testing for SFV sequences in peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) by using generic integrase, pol, and LTR primers has also been used to detect the presence of SFV infection Bieniasz et al 1995, Broussard et al 1997, Schweizer and Neumann-Haefelin 1995.
• Previous studies examining the genetic variability of SFVs suggested that these retroviruses have coevolved with their natural hosts Blewett et al 2000, Broussard et al 1997, Heneine et al 1998, Schweizer and Neumann-Haefelin 1995. Thus, SFV sequences from baboons, AGMs, and mangabeys formed an African Old World monkey clade, while SFV sequences from Asian macaques were in a separate lineage. Similarly, SFV sequences from the great apes such as bonobos, chimpanzees, orangutans, and gorillas formed another distinct clade.
• While SFVs are known to endemically infect a large number of NHPs, there is little evidence that humans are naturally infected with FVs. Surveys of a large number of humans from many different geographic locations and ethnic backgrounds have failed to show evidence of FV infection Ali et al 1996, Schweizer et al 1995. Nonetheless, more recent investigations evaluating cross-species transmission of simian retroviruses to persons at risk for occupational exposures to NHPs reported transmission of SFVs to humans Boneva et al 2002, Brooks et al 2002, Heneine et al 1998, Sandstrom et al 2000, Schweizer et al 1995. To date, these studies have identified SFV infection in 2–3% of persons with occupational exposures to NHPs at research institutions or zoos. SFV in these primate workers was shown by phylogenetic analysis to have originated from baboons (n = 4), AGMs (n = 2), chimpanzees (n = 6), and macaques (n = 1) Brooks et al 2002, Heneine et al 1998, Sandstrom et al 2000, Schweizer et al 1995, Schweizer et al 1997. Similar to the natural host, SFV-infected humans are apparently asymptomatic despite serologic evidence of a long persistent infection. However, longitudinal follow-up of a large number of infected persons may be necessary to fully assess any clinical outcomes associated with SFV infection.
• The presence of zoonotic SFV infections in humans has increased the importance of defining the public health implications of these infections. These studies require an expanded surveillance to identify SFV-infected persons and therefore will need improved diagnostic assays. These assays should be less laborious by not requiring multiple testing with different SFV antigens, and they should be validated on a wide range of SFV variants.
• In this study, we have developed a WB assay that combines antigens from SFVAGM and SFVCPZ into a single test. The combined-antigen WB (CA-WB) assay was validated with serum samples from primates representing 32 African and Asian primate species and 16 humans with known SFV infection. We also examined the seroprevalence of SFV in a large number of captive-bred and wild-born African and Asian NHP species. In addition, we report the isolation and identification of SFVs from four primate species not previously known to be infected with SFV and show phylogenetic evidence that each represents a new, distinct lineage.
• [...]

Discussion

• Cross-species transmission of retroviruses from NHPs has been linked to the origin of the HIV pandemic, with HIV-1 and HIV-2 believed to be the result of zoonotic transfer of simian immunodeficiency viruses (SIVs) from chimpanzees and sooty mangabeys, respectively (Hahn et al., 2000). Similarly, phylogenetic evidence suggests that the HTLV-1 subtypes may have arisen from multiple introductions of the simian T cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (STLV-1) into ancient human populations (Slattery et al., 1999). The renewed investigations of the spread and clinical outcome of SFV infections among humans require the availability of improved serologic assays capable of detecting SFV antibodies in a broad spectrum of Old World monkeys and apes. Thus, we developed and validated a serologic assay that combines two divergent antigens from SFVAGM and SFVCPZ in a single test.
• The 100% sensitivity and specificity observed among samples from 32 primate species confirms the ability of this assay to detect divergent SFVs. These data support the use of the CA-WB assay in assessing risks of SFV transmission to persons exposed to a wide variety of NHPs and in determining the incidence and seroprevalence of SFV infection in captive and feral NHPs. We also show an absence of reactivity with human sera from persons infected with HIV or HTLV, confirming a lack of cross-reactivity with this assay. By requiring only a single test for SFV antibody detection, the new CA-WB assay will facilitate the screening of larger populations.
• Previous studies of the prevalence of SFV infection in NHPs have been limited to small numbers and types of animals housed at research centers, such as baboons, macaques, chimpanzees, AGMs, and a few New World monkeys and prosimians Blewett et al 2000, Meiering and Linial 2001. However, exposures to a larger variety of NHPs and their simian retroviruses may occur in persons who work in zoological gardens and individuals who live in close contact with monkeys, such as bush-meat hunters or pet owners (Peeters et al., 2002). Nonetheless, little is known about the prevalence of SFV infection in monkeys and apes found in these settings.
• Our study is the first to our knowledge to document such an extensive distribution of SFV infection among NHP species. Our finding of an overall 73.8% SFV seroprevalence rate in 35 of 40 species of captive-bred African and Asian primates is significant and consistent with previous estimates on the high prevalence rates (≥70%) of SFV infections observed in small numbers of captive primates used in biomedical research (Meiering and Linial, 2001). In contrast, other simian retroviruses such as SIV and STLV have both a lower distribution and a lower seroprevalance (about 35%) among captive-bred and wild-born primates (Fultz, 1994). These data suggest that persons exposed to NHPs may be at higher risk for zoonotic infections with SFV than with SIV or STLV, and the data may also help explain the observed higher prevalence of SFV antibodies (∼3%) in occupationally exposed persons than either SIV (0.43%) or STLV (0%) (Heneine et al., 1998). These results underscore the importance of work practices that prevent exposure to these viruses and highlight the need for increased surveillance and additional studies to define the clinical outcomes and transmissibility of these infections.
• We also found a generally lower prevalence of SFV infection among wild-born primates (44.6%) than among captive-bred animals (73.8%). These observed differences in the prevalence of SFV among wild-born and captive-bred NHPs may be attributed to the limited number of wild-born NHPs tested or may reflect increased transmission in captive-bred animals. Interestingly, we also observed many SFV-seronegative primates from both Africa and Asia including captive-born red-eared guenons, black-crested mangabeys, Angolan colobus monkeys, and siamangs, suggesting that SFV in captive-bred NHPs may not be as ubiquitous as previously thought. However, these negative findings and the observed lower SFV seroprevalence in wild-born primates may require confirmation by testing larger numbers of animals. The observed negative WB results in these animals may not be due to a lower assay sensitivity since SFV antibodies were detected in closely related primate species.
• While this study provides evidence that the CA-WB assay is sensitive for the detection of antibodies to SFV variants in 32 different NHP species, our findings also show that the assay may not reliably detect antibodies to SFV in sera from some orangutans. A similar weak cross-reactivity of orangutan sera to SFVAGM and SFVCPZ has been observed by others (Hahn et al., 1994). However, we show that this limitation could be overcome by using the autologous SFVPON antigen. The lack of cross-reactivity between SFVPON-specific antibodies and the SFVAGM and SFVCPZ antigens may be due to divergence in the highly conserved epitopes in the SFVPON Gag proteins. For example, the predicted SFVPON Gag sequence has only about 40–50% identity to the SFVAGM and SFVCPZ Gag proteins, respectively (McClure et al., 1994). In contrast, the Gag proteins from SFVMAC, SFVAGM, and SFVCPZ share at least 64% identity (Herchenroder et al., 1994). These results show that testing for antibodies to SFVPON in orangutans or in persons exposed to orangutans may require the inclusion of an SFVPON antigen in the serologic screening assay.
• The new SFVs identified in the current study represent the first primate Spumaviruses described for Allen’s swamp monkeys, gibbons, and langurs and demonstrate the broad genetic diversity of Old World primate FVs. Phylogenetic analysis of integrase sequences from the new SFV isolates is consistent with a coevolution with their primate hosts as previously suggested for other SFVs Blewett et al 2000, Broussard et al 1997, Schweizer and Neumann-Haefelin 1995, Heneine et al 1998. Old World monkeys and apes are divided into four subfamilies, the Cercopithecines (cheek pouch monkeys), Colobines (leaf-eating monkeys), Hylobatids (lesser apes such as gibbons), and Hominids (orangutans, gorillas, chimpanzees, and bonobos) (Groves, 2001). Thus, as expected, the Hylobate SFVs cluster near the Hominid sequences; the Allenopithecus SFV sequence forms a separate lineage with SFVs from other Cercopithecines, and the SFV from a Colobine host, the Trachypithecus, forms another unique lineage between the Cercopithecine and Hominid subfamilies. The coevolution of SFVs in Old World monkeys and apes combined with wide distribution of distinct SFVs in the remaining primate taxonomic families, including New World monkeys and prosimians, suggests that ancestral SFVs were present in mammals before primate speciation. Thus, if primate divergence began at least 65 million years ago as previously estimated (Martin, 1993), then SFVs may be the oldest known exogenous simian retroviruses.
• Our study also shows that generic PCR assays may not detect highly divergent SFVs. Thus, the CA-WB assay is a better diagnostic tool, and the study results further support the use of this method for the diagnosis and surveillance of infection originating from divergent SFVs among both NHPs and humans. Our ability to isolate SFVs from these primates without detectable proviral sequences by PCR illustrates the utility of virus isolation and confirms the observed seropositivity in the CA-WB assay. Thus, our inability to PCR amplify SFV sequences from the seropositive P. nemaeus PBL DNA lysates may indicate that this species may harbor yet another highly divergent SFV.
• In conclusion, we have described a highly sensitive and specific CA-WB assay for the detection of SFV antibodies from both naturally infected primates and accidentally infected humans. We have also shown that unlike other simian retroviruses, SFVs have both a wide distribution and a high seroprevalence among African and Asian NHPs. These results imply that persons who have frequent contact with NHPs may be at increased risk for cross-species SFV infection. The CA-WB assay should facilitate testing of larger human populations for evidence of SFV infection.
• [...]

Acknowledgments

• We thank the veterinary and administrative staff at the many zoological gardens, primate centers, and research institutions that were kind enough to provide archived sera and fresh blood specimens from primates housed at their facilities. We are also grateful to the following for providing samples: Ronald Otten and Dennis Ellenberger (CDC), Francois Villinger and Harold McClure (Emory University), Tom Butler and Jonathan Allan (Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research), Ottmar Herchenröder (Institut fuer Virologie, Dresden, Germany), and Zoo Atlanta. Also, we thank Michael Busch (Blood Centers of the Pacific), Paul Sandstrom (Health Canada), and Paul Johnston (University of Illinois) for the U.S. blood donor samples, helpful discussion, and the SFVPON isolate, respectively. Finally, we thank Mahedi Andau and Edwin Bossi of the Sabah Wildlife Department of Malaysia for help with the Bornean orangutan sera. Use of trade names is for identification only and does not constitute endorsement by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Public Health Service, or the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nathan Wolfe was supported by an international research development award from the National Institutes of Health, Fogarty International Center (K01 TW00003-01).

When veterinarian [Dr. James Stephen Desmond (born 1971)], V08, VG08, and his wife, Jenny, first arrived in Liberia in July 2015 to care for a group of chimpanzees, the situation they found brought them to tears. “It was horrible,” recalled Jim. “The chimps were desperate. You’d come up with a boat to bring them food, and the chimps would go crazy trying to climb in to grab it. And they were fighting each other, because there just wasn’t enough to go around.”

For thirty years, chimpanzees kept at the Liberian Institute for Biomedical Research served as research subjects for hepatitis B vaccine studies conducted by the New York Blood Center. In 2006, the blood center halted its experiments, retiring the apes to six nearby islands within an estuarine habitat with extensive mangrove forests. For nearly a decade, former lab staff cared for the animals, which were wholly dependent on humans for food and fresh water. Then, in March 2015, the blood center cut off all funds. The staff—who kept on caring for the chimps, unpaid—knew all the animals were likely to die if they couldn’t find anyone to help.

No one knows what would have happened if not for the recent Ebola outbreak in West Africa, which started in Guinea in December 2013 and raged across the neighboring countries of Liberia and Sierra Leone, killing more than 11,000 people. Because the former hepatitis research operation was one of the few laboratories in Liberia—a nation torn apart by a 14-year civil war—researchers from international health agencies used it to conduct Ebola research. The chimpanzees’ head caretaker, Joseph Thomas, who had worked with the animals since the 1970s, brought visiting scientists out on his boat to witness the chimps’ distress firsthand, and begged them for money to buy both food and the fuel needed to bring it to the animals. One of those scientists alerted the Humane Society of the United States (HSUS).

The HSUS and a coalition of 40 organizations responded by trying to find someone to manage the chimps on-site and soon found that the short list of qualified people was short indeed, said Doug Cress, then the director of the United Nations’ Great Ape Survival Project. At the top of that list were Jim and [Dr. James Stephen Desmond (born 1971)]: Over fifteen years, they had cared for gorillas, orangutans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and other primates at eight sanctuaries in seven countries around the world. When several organizations came together to create a sanctuary for eastern lowland gorillas in Democratic Republic of the Congo, Cress had recommended the Desmonds because they could whip up community support like no one else, even from such a remote facility: on top of a mountain, miles from the nearest city or airfield, the nearest neighbors often rebel armies. Just as important as that experience, Cress said, was that the couple knew when they’d need to adjust their approach for an entirely new climate.

Jim and Jenny Desmond are caring for 17 young chimps confiscated by the Forestry Development Authority, the government agency tasked with protecting wildlife and enforcing wildlife laws in Liberia. Photo: Jenny Desmond

But as it turned out, the plight of the former lab chimps wasn’t the only crisis to contend with in Liberia. During a five-week intervention Jim and Jenny undertook before signing on to the job, something unexpected happened: Locals brought them two infant chimps that had been kept as pets in deplorable conditions. Over time, more and more came in—today, 17 of them have been confiscated by the Forestry Development Authority, the government agency tasked with protecting wildlife and enforcing wildlife laws in Liberia. Most of the animals are only two or three years old, and all are victims of poachers illegally hunting adult chimpanzees for meat and selling their young offspring as pets. The orphaned chimps’ history is not just tragic; it’s also a troubling indicator of what lies ahead for western chimpanzees, a critically endangered subspecies that saw its numbers in the wild decline by 80 percent between 1990 and 2014.

The Desmonds came to understand that they were ideally situated to help combat the problem. First, they had the vast stores of experience they would need to help build a sanctuary for the chimps from the ground up. Second, they happened to be in one of the best possible places for such a sanctuary to be built. The years of unrest in Liberia has meant that much of the chimpanzees’ habitat there has been protected from development. Of the roughly thirty-five thousand western chimpanzees that still live in West Africa, seven thousand are estimated to inhabit this one small country. “It’s the only country in West Africa where large tracts of the Upper Guinean forests still remain intact,” Jim said.

So today, more than two years after setting foot in the war-torn nation, Jim and Jenny have no plans to leave. Liberia: Come for the desperate chimps abandoned on mangrove islands, stay for the desperate chimps orphaned by poachers—it’s not a pitch for a kind of life most people would find irresistible. But the Desmonds aren’t most people.

Anyone looking in from the outside would assume that Jim and Jenny have always worked in wildlife conservation. But Jim was a well-paid recent chemistry grad employed in pharma in 1994 when he met Jenny, who was leading trainings on large-scale fund-raising around the U.S. Within a year after meeting, the two married.

Their lives changed course on an around-the-world honeymoon. At an orangutan sanctuary in Borneo, Jim met [Dr. Annelisa Marcelle Kilbourn (born 1967)], V96, who was working with veterinarian [Dr. William Bamberger Karesh (born 1955)] and virologist [Dr. Nathan Daniel Wolfe (born 1970)] to look for diseases that great apes might pass on to humans and vice versa. (Kilbourn, whose research provided the first evidence that Ebola threatened wild gorillas, died in a 2002 plane crash [Linked to http://www.nytimes.com/2002/11/05/nyregion/annelisa-m-kilbourn-35-dies-tied-ebola-to-death-of-gorillas.html , saved here as PDF :  [HN020U][GDrive] ].) Jim couldn’t stop thinking about the encounter. If he could do the kind of work that Kilbourn was doing, he could apply his scientific mind to a cause he felt passionate about. But first he would need to go to veterinary school to build the proper foundation.

Jenny took the bold step of writing the famous primatologist Jane Goodall to ask for advice on how Jim might gain experience with African wildlife to strengthen his applications. “Jane’s assistant, the wonderful Mary Lewis, wrote me back with a personal message from Jane,” Jenny recalled. Goodall referred the couple to Debby Cox, then the director of the Jane Goodall Institute, who took them in as managers of the Uganda Wildlife Education Centre. “From that day forward,” Jenny said, “our lives were never the same.”

Jim was determined to go to Cummings School, and when he didn’t get in on his first try, he turned down an acceptance from another respected veterinary school to reapply. “If you wanted a different kind of career in veterinary medicine, Tufts was the place to go,” he said. After he was accepted to Cummings in 2003, he enrolled in a dual-degree program that allows students to earn a D.V.M. alongside a master’s in comparative biomedical sciences over five years. A Dr. Henry L. Foster Scholarship helped Jim pursue his new path by lessening some of his debt.

A year after graduating in 2008, Jim landed his dream job with EcoHealth Alliance, which conducts international research into the relationships between wildlife, ecosystems, and human health. For six years, he and Jenny spent months at a time in China, Indonesia, and Myanmar while Jim tested domestic animals for pathogens, conducted avian influenza surveillance, and investigated wildlife markets as sources of animal diseases that could spread to people. The Desmonds also became the Pan African Sanctuary Alliance’s go-to unit in times of crisis. “It just seemed there was no task too big for those two,” said Cress, who served as executive director for the association of primate rescue centers and sanctuaries across Africa.

A Dr. Henry L. Foster Scholarship helped [Dr. James Stephen Desmond (born 1971)] pursue a new path in wildlife veterinary medicine. Photo: Jenny Desmond

In 2015, the HSUS approached the couple, then working in Kenya, about the position in Liberia. “We didn’t say yes right away,” said Jim, explaining that they were happy in Kenya and had just been offered a job managing a conservation center there. But a five-week intervention turned into a yearlong contract with the HSUS, and then another.

Their work turned the situation around for the former lab chimps. The Desmonds not only made sure the animals got enough food; they corrected the unnatural feeding schedule that was causing so much stress. “The chimps were getting fed only every other day,” said Jim. Within a few months of daily feedings, the chimps were relaxed and coexisting peacefully, and now, said Jim, “they’ve put on weight and their coats have a glossy sheen.” Jim also instituted a much-needed—and so far successful—birth control plan. The chimpanzees were having babies, which was “really not a good situation,” he said, “because each new chimp will live fifty to sixty years in captivity.”

In May 2017, the HSUS came to an agreement with the blood center. The HSUS would assume lifetime care of the lab chimps, supported by $6 million from the blood center. Five months later, the Desmonds’ second consulting contract with the HSUS ended and was not renewed. They decided to stay in Liberia anyway. EcoHealth in November 2015 had tapped Jim to lead a new project there aimed at finding the species that keeps the Ebola virus circulating in nature between outbreaks in humans. And they were devoted to helping the orphaned wild chimpanzees.

The decision to stay in Liberia was not one they took lightly. “It would’ve been a lot more fun to stay in East Africa,” Jim said. In their five years living along Lake Victoria and the white sands of Diani Beach, the Desmonds frequently had friends and family visiting, and savannah safaris in national parks were only a short drive away. “We miss it sometimes,” Jim said. “But this is where we were meant to be, I think.”

In addition to the couple’s work with chimpanzees, Jim has had his hands full with his infectious disease research. The Liberia study seeks to test eighteen thousand bats for Ebola by the end of 2019, which has meant Jim has had to assemble the right research team: ten research technicians, two social scientists, an administrator, and five drivers. “The only non-Liberian who works on the project in Liberia is me,” Jim said. Given the brain drain that resulted from the country’s civil war, this “has been our biggest success so far.” He noted that the team operates independently, and “now the people we’ve trained can train other Liberians.”

Jonathan Epstein, V02, MG02, the associate vice president of conservation medicine at EcoHealth, said, “Jim is very committed to making sure that our local in-country team is both highly trained and also well mentored. He’s right there with them in the field and the office, teaching them about every aspect of the project from animal capture to sample storage to data management.” That’s important, Epstein said, because “ultimately, Liberia will have to be prepared to handle the next zoonotic disease outbreak, whether it’s Ebola or something entirely new.”

[...]

• https://web.archive.org/web/20030528115159/http://www.sosrhino.org/memorybook/index.php?&page=2
• 2003-web-archive-org-sosrhino-org-memorybook-index-2.pdf
• https://drive.google.com/file/d/16-ainEL8y4dFVnloV_5B1VDqR7wIUJp8/view?usp=sharing
• https://web.archive.org/web/20030528115104/http://www.sosrhino.org/memorybook/index.php?&page=3
• 2003-web-archive-org-sosrhino-org-memorybook-index-3.pdf
• https://drive.google.com/file/d/1EuvLEaQjy4MvabhhIraVe-atXVTHDzs6/view?usp=sharing

• Author:  Markus Eichhorn   ( Posted: 2nd May 2003 )
  • • I knew Annalisa from her time in Sepilok, Sabah. Her down to earth approach and willingness to get her hands dirty were a great example to vets and ecologists alike. She had a pragmatic approach to the complex issues surrounding animal conservation, and was never dissuaded by the obstacles, whether practical or political. 
    • She was also able to see the funnier side of her work, and there was certainly a comical element to some of the numerous strategies employed to get two rhinos to understand the fundamentals of nature. Her anecdotes enlivened many an evening, all the more so because of her obvious passion and commitment.
    • I am especially grateful for her help and advice in setting up an orangutan study in Sepilok several years ago. Her experience and rational approach were invaluable.
    • I also remember her as the girl who, given a grotty bar and cheesy music, would happily dance non-stop for hours without needing a single drink. She was an essential component of any Sepilok party, and leaves us with many fond memories.
    • All who knew her in Sepilok had great respect for her, both as a scientist and as a friend. She will be greatly missed. My condolences to her family and many friends.
• Author:  Christopher Cole   ( Posted: 28th Apr 2003 )
  • • I am in shock. Lisa was an old and dear friend. 
    • She had a single minded dedication to wildlife -- so much so that those of us who loved her would occasionally chide her for caring less for the human species than every other.
    • But she led exactly the life that she wanted. 
    • I remember one evening all the way back in 1985, she told me that she pictured herself flying into Africa to save endangered species such as Rhinos and Gorillas. I laughed then, thinking her naive!
    • A life well led. A life to envy.
    • Au revoir Lisa. Au revoir. 
• Author:   Matt Wormser  ( Posted: 23rd Apr 2003 )
  • • It was with considerable sadness that I recently learned of Annelisa's death in the alumni notes of the School for Field Studies magazine. We spent the spring of 1989 together in Kenya on a wildlife biology program of theirs, in what I believe was her first trip to Africa. It was clear from our time together, however, that it would be the first of many such trips. 
    • She was clearly exceptional. While many of us were varied in our commitment and interest in the fieldwork, her passion for the field and the subject matter shone brightly. She was a diligent worker both in her studies, and in helping keep our field operations running smoothly. Though I had not spoken with her since shortly after our return, to learn of a career path that differed from the one which she pursued would have been the surprise. 
    • In many ways I remember Annelisa as a person at times less comfortable in the domesticated world than she was in the wild one. While engaging, funny and very fun to be around, her passion remained with those faraway places, and to read after these years of her lifeís devotion to the wildlife and ecosystems most threatened is to be inspired once again to meet the challenge of devoting one's life to those most important things. 
    • To a true citizen of the planet, hats off to a beautiful life well lived.
• Author:    Christine Evans   ( Posted: 24th Mar 2003 )
  • • Annelisa was the eldest daughter of my cousin Barry. I had not seen her since she was very young. I am very proud that a Kilbourn had such a reputation and high regard. Her work will be remembered snd valued for many years. My love to Barry, Hans and Kirsten. 
• Author:   jontili kamal    ( Posted: 27th Dec 2002 )
  • • knowing you was the bestest to happen. you showed me how to be merry even in the worstest time. there are no rivers too wide for you. you are a super friend and a big sis. my duracel bunny your druming will go on forever 
• Author:  Lyndsay Gale    ( Posted: 20th Dec 2002 )
  • • I never met Annelisa, but as a young researcher myself, with aspirations of a similar nature as Annelisas\', I am rejoicing in her life and shedding thousands of tears over her death. What a wonderful woman. 
• Author:  Nancy McDaniel    ( Posted: 18th Dec 2002 )
  • • I didn\'t know Annelisa well, just from my volunteer work at the Lincoln Park Zoo Hospital. I was continually struck not only my her competence and compassion as a vet, but also by her astionishing multi-faceted talents. The term \"Renaissance Woman\" would certainly apply. I always kept finding out more talents and skills she had and things she had already done in her (too) short life. She was quite an amazing woman. She will be missed by all who ever knew or worked with her. 
• Author:  Francis Chen   ( Posted: 15th Dec 2002 )
  • • I always remember what she said during the Tabin jungle survey : "We took all these things for granted... ...You guys have clean air, clean water, all that because of these clean forest..." Let's carry on this with her spirit in us. Rest In Peace...Love. 
• Author:   Yongjun    ( Posted: 6th Dec 2002 )
  • • She is a great woman, dedicated to her job, and a wonderful friend. I will never forget the times we spent togather in Tabin 
• Author:   Eileen    ( Posted: 6th Dec 2002 )
  • • She was my hero... 
• Author:   Rosa    ( Posted: 16th Nov 2002 )
  • • A great loss to the team. She was a wonderful colleague, teacher & friend. Taught us how to live to the fullest everyday. Thank you, doc. Gonna miss u. 
    • From Sosrhino team Sepilok 
• Author:   Andreia (Portugal)    ( Posted: 15th Nov 2002 )
  • • although i dod not know her personally i have always admired her work... she did what so little do... nature needs help... the wild animals need help... and now she's gone... she must be remembered as someone very special...
    • i wish all the best to all her freiends, family, co-workers and followers... 
• Author:   Marie and Tom    ( Posted: 14th Nov 2002 )
  • • Although we only knew Annelisa for a brief time at Sepilok, it was a privilege to have met her and see first hand the conservation work she devoted her life to. We are deeply saddened by her death and our thoughts are with her family and friends. 
• Author:    Teik Lim     ( Posted: 13th Nov 2002 )
  • • i never expect after week i open my email the 1st email i read is the abt Dr Annelisa plane accident. I am shock and speechless. I will never forget the days i spend to in tabin SOS headquater with her and the period of time that she thought us how to use the GPRS and Cybertracker. Thank Dr Annelisa, miss you always 
• Author:     Sandra    ( Posted: 13th Nov 2002 )
  • • Dear SOSRhino: So sorry to hear of your loss of a friend, conservationist and tireless researcher. --Sandra
• Author:   jill    ( Posted: 12th Nov 2002 )
  • • I cannot believe we have all lost someone so special. I hope this tragedy brings us all inspiration to live life more fully and appreciate those we love. I'll miss you Annelisa. 
• Author:   Robert Chong     ( Posted: 3rd Dec 2002 )
  • • I was totally shocked and saddened by the front page news of the untimely demise of Dr Annalisa.
    • The first time I met Dr Annilisa was at the Sepilok OrangUtan Center and later over dinners with Dr Edwin Bosi at our BB.Dr Annalisa was always joyful and she remembers everyone even after a long absence from Sepilok.
    • She always said " I'm back " whenever we met.
    • It's indeed a very tragic lost to all of us who have known her. My condolences to the family .
    • Robert
    • Nov 13th Sepilok Sabah 
• Author:    Julie Lemon    ( Posted: 12th Nov 2002 )
  • • As I heard the tragic news, my stomach hit the floor. This earth has lost an amazing person. I was fortunate to work and live with her in Chicago. I will always remember her passion, energy, laughter and her amazing moves on the dance floor. I learned so much from her in our short time together and I miss her deeply. My regards to her family and all those who knew and loved her! 
• Author:    Stacey Gore   ( Posted: 11th Nov 2002 )
  • • The animals and people Annelisa met had better lives because of her. I am thankful for having known such a wonderful person. I am terribly saddened and send my deepest sympathy to her family. 
• Author:  TAY ZHONG RUI    ( Posted: 10th Nov 2002 )
  • • life is full of setbacks to pin us down,
    • someone up there try to make us frown,
    • memories we kept for the heart and soul,
    • but life is all empty when memories make me so sad and low. 
• Author:    Tan Kit Hoong    ( Posted: 3rd Dec 2002 )
  • • Words are difficult to describe my feelings right now.
    • Even though I met her for a short time, I will always remember Annelisa as a fun-loving person who loved to dance.
    • That being said, she was also the most hard-working person I had ever met.
    • I am changed for the better by having known her.
    • My condolences to Annelisa's family. 
• Author:    Nur Maria Samatha Bte Ismail    (  Posted: 10th Nov 2002 )
  • • Dr Annelisa..
      • • A - Adventurous
        • N - Naturalist
        • N - Noble
        • E - Exuberant
        • L - Lively
        • I - Interesting
        • S - Savvy
        • A - Amazing
    • with fond memories,
    • Maria@TeamLoveRhino 
• Author:    Mimi Elissa    ( Posted: 9th Nov 2002 )
  • • Thouhgh we met for a short time... over sushi dinner, she left a wonderful impression of a vibrant young spirit. It is sad to have such a life cut short. 
• Author: Tan Shiling    ( Posted: 3rd Dec 2002 )
  • • My deepest condolences to Dr Annelisa's family and friends... .
    • Dr Annelisa was an amazing woman. Exuberant and always so dedicated to her work, I'll always remember the last words she said to me before i was back in Singapore, " Dont worry, you have a permanent job here with us in Tabin! " 
    • I'll miss her dearly & her demise is indeed a great loss to everybody and the conservation world. 
    • She was really amazing and wonderful. Im really fortunate to have met her. 
    • Thank god for giving me that chance. May god bless her soul. 
    • In loving memory...
    • Regards,    shiling 
• Author:   MID S.K.NG    ( Posted: 9th Nov 2002 )
  • • Indeed shocking news... 
    • It was honorable to meet such a dedicated person who puts her life at the edge.
    • The wildlife world is at a great lost...but nevertheless her strong will spirit lives on to inspire many.....[God bless Dr Annelisa )
• Author:    Ann Manharth   ( Posted: 8th Nov 2002 )
  • • Annelisa - I miss you so much. We are all privileged to have known you, even if for far too short a time.
    • My deepest sympathies to Annelisa's family, friends, and the wildlife she was so dedicated to. If only we can all aspire to be a little more like Annelisa . . . what a better place the world might be. 
• Author: Mohd Khan Monin Khan    ( Posted: 8th Nov 2002 )
  • • We send our deepest condolences to the family of Annelisa Kilbourn who was tragically killed Friday in a plane accident in Gabon, Africa. Annelisa was a lifely person with great interest in conservation. Her demise is a great loss to all of us working to achieve the same goals.
    • AsRSG / MRF 
• Author:   Dr. Thomas J. Foose    ( Posted: 8th Nov 2002 )
  • • Dear All: 
    • Please accept deepest sympathies on such a tragic and almost incredible development. Annelisa was an exceptional person. Beyond the personal considerations, it is a great loss to the conservation world. 
    • Thanks. 
    • Regards.   Tom 
• Author:   Darin Collins/Seattle    ( Posted: 8th Nov 2002 )
  • • Annelisa will forever be remembered for her unselfish energy and enthusiasm for striving to create all that is best in life for animals, and people. Bless her family for nurturing such a wonderful spirit. 
• Author:      David Lowe    ( Posted: 8th Nov 2002 )
  • • I had only spoken with Dr. Kilbourn once by phone, yet I was very impressed with her enthusiasm for her work, her warmth, extensive experience, and clarity of vision about the Sumatran Rhino project we were discussing. I deeply regret that I will not have the chance to meet her in person or work with her. All of us at Earthwatch Institute are saddened at this tragic loss. 
• Author:  Anna    ( Posted: 8th Nov 2002 ) 
  • • always be in our mind... 
• Author:  Dr. M.S. Thayaparan   ( Posted: 8th Nov 2002 )
  • • I would like to express my deepest sympathies to what happened to Dr. Annelisa Kilbourn 
• Author:    Sabine Hilsberg    ( Posted: 8th Nov 2002 )
  • • Still in shock about this tragic accident-news, I would like to send my condolence to Annekisa's family. I met Annelisa in summer of 2000, at her start of work for SOS Rhino. I very much valued her as a researcher and friend. She alway was a great benefit to the organizations she worked for and well liked by everybody. I am very very sad about this loss to our conservation world, were people like her are very much needed. God bless her soul. 
• Author:    Shawn Quck    ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002 )
  • • Very sorry to hear this and is very sad to lose a great friend. 
• Author:  Kyle Lim   ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002 )
  • • You are deeply missed by all of us from Team Love Rhino I & II, Singapore. In loving memory. 
• Author:    Pat Harrison    ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002 )
  • • Sorry to hear this tragic news. I know this is a great loss. 
• Author:   M.S. Thayaaparan    ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002 )
  • • I heard the sad news about Annelisa from Dr. Jeyandran. I am still in shock and could not believe that even still true. Please pass on my sympathy to her family, friends and SOs Rhino team. I think SOS Rhino lost one of their important players. 
• Author:  Donna Bruno    ( Posted: 3rd Dec 2002 )
  • • I'm sorry about Annelisa. Its amazing the impact she had on so many people and animals. 
• Author:   Dr. Edwin Bosi    ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002 )
  • • I am still in the state of shock, disbelief and grieving. I will write more later. 
• Author:  Cede and Caroline Prudente     ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002 )
  • • I am saddened and shocked. My sympathy to Annelisa's family. She was our good frined and a role model for wildlife conservation here in Sabah. God bless her soul. 
• Author:   S.H. Sohmer    ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002 )
  • • Please accept my condolences on this tragic loss 
• Author:   Margaret Ebon    ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002 ) 
  • • I would like to express my deepest sympathies to what happened to Dr. Annelisa Kilbourn the Research and Field Scientist last friday, especially to her family and friends. The world are losing one of the greatest contributer of SOs Rhino research especially to my country Malaysia (in Sabah). May God bless her. 
• Author:  Kimberly Wright   ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002 )
  • • I just got the terrible news about Annelisa. I can't believe it...that is so sad. I thought she was great! 
• Author:   Cindy Krauss    ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002  )
  • • I was so sorry to hear about Annelisa. I just can't believe it! The animals of this world lost a great friend and advocate. 
• Author:    Satya Sinha     ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002 )
  • • I am really shocked after getting this message. From last couple months we are keeping contact for her arrival in Dudhwa but some how planned dates could not get final shape. It is a great loss to all of us and share my feeling and pray to God. 
• Author:  Dr. Sunny Tan     ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002 )
  • • I am sorry to hear that someone like Annelisa whom had love for conservation and contributed so much in field just had suddenly died. She was a very nice person I met her a few times. We all going to miss her. May her soul live in peace 
• Author:  Cindy Swisher    ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002  ) 
  • • We are so sorry to hear about the loss of Dr. Annelisa. Our thouts and prayers are with you. We would with to make a donation in her honor. Is there a special fund set up at SOS in her name? 
• Author:   Bonnie Jacobs     ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002 )
  • • Those of us who had the pleasure of working and spending time with Annelisa are quite shaken and saddened by her loss. She was an exceptional person who absolutely followed a heartfelt path. Waht a great loss to those who knew her as well as the wildlife she worked so hard for. Thank you for establishing a memorial fund and planning a service. 
• Author:   Franz Schwarzenberger   ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002 )
  • • I am shocked to hear about this tragic event and I would like to express my deepest sympathies on this. I just can not believe this is true. I have met Annelisa just recently at the Milwaukee meeting and she told me she would go to Afrika again after the meeting. Sorry about this 
• Author:   Dr. Thomas J. Foose    ( Posted: 7th Nov 2002 )
  • • Please accept deepest sympathies on such a tragic and almost incredible development. Annelisa was an exceptional person. Beyond the personal considerations, it is a great loss to the conservation world.