Psittacosis singer Philip Selway. Lena Rose Pepperdine died in 1930 of parrot fever. She was the first wife of George Pepperdine, the founder of Pepperdine University. Psittacosis Psittacosis—also known as parrot fever, and ornithosis—is a zoonotic infectious disease caused by a bacterium called "Chlamydophila psittaci" and contracted from infected parrots, such as macaws, cockatiels, and budgerigars, and pigeons, sparrows, ducks, hens, gulls and many other species of birds. The incidence of infection in canaries and finches is believed to be lower than in psittacine birds. In certain contexts, the word is used when the disease is carried by any species of
Derzsy's disease Derzsy's disease Derzsy's disease is caused by Anseriform dependoparvovirus 1, in the "Parvoviridae" family. It affects geese and Muscovy ducks. The virus is shed in the faeces and thus transmission is horizontal, via the direct faecal-oral route and also indirectly via fomites. Vertical transmission is also possible. Clinical disease only occurs in young geese and ducks between birth and 4–5 weeks of age. Several genotypes have been described. The genotype is based upon the sequence of the VP3 protein. Acute disease leads to death in most birds between the ages of 7–10 days. Clinical signs are quite limited in those