Aflatoxin contamination of corn used as bait for deer in the southeastern United States.

Samples of shelled corn used for wildlife feed were taken from bait piles and storage bins in North Carolina and South Carolina (USA) from 29 September through 28 November 1993, and were analyzed for aflatoxin. Twenty (51%) of 39 samples were positive, with aflatoxin levels ranging from a trace to 750 parts per billion. Based on the high prevalence of aflatoxin-contaminated corn, exposure of wild-life to aflatoxin undoubtedly occurs, although the effects of such exposure are largely unknown.

An initial investigation of the status of Borrellia burgodorferi and its suspected primary vector, Ixodes scapularis, in South Carolina.

Based on a survey of hunter-harvested deer, the suspected primary vector of Lyme disease in the Southeast, I. scapularis, is most prevalent in sandhill and coastal plain counties of South Carolina. None of 271 I. scapularis examined were found to be infected with the Lyme disease spirochete. However, many more specimens of I. scapularis, A. americanum, and other tick species must be examined before an accurate estimate of the probability of acquiring Lyme disease in South Carolina can be made.