Phocine distemper virus

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Phocine distemper virus (PDV) is a morbillivirus that mainly infects seals. It causes breathing problems, fever, and nervous symptoms. PDV was first identified in 1988 after outbreaks killed about 18,000 harbor seals and 300 grey seals along northern Europe’s coast. In 2002, another outbreak along the North Sea killed about 21,700 seals, roughly half of the local population. Antibodies to PDV have been found in other carnivores in the Western North Atlantic, including polar bears and Atlantic walruses, indicating wider exposure. The sudden appearance of PDV and related viruses in aquatic mammals is thought to be linked to environmental changes. Pollutants may weaken immune defenses, and climate change and overfishing may push virus-carrying species into new areas, exposing susceptible seal populations to infection.