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Description:
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Mycotoxins are toxic metabolites produced by various genera of fungi , such as Aspergillus , Fusarium , and Penicillium . Aflatoxins , produced primarily by A . flavus and A . parasiticus , are the most commonly occurring and widely known mycotoxins . Aflatoxins are carcinogenic , hepatotoxic , teratogenic , and immunosuppressive . Aflatoxins can affect a wide variety of animals , including fish , rodents , waterfowl , poultry , swine , and cattle . The significance of the problem for wildlife , however , is largely unknown .
Data concerning impacts of aflatoxin on wildlife in the field are limited . Fifty -one percent of com used for feeding deer in North and South Carolina contained AF with concentrations as high as 750 ppb (Fischer et al . 1995 ) . Couvillion et al . (1991 ) investigated the mycotoxin production dynamics of waste com . Corn left in the field after harvest was found to contain 5 to 5 ,000 ppb AF . Comparison of these levels to those used in laboratory experiments suggests many possible detrimental impacts on wildlife . Large waterfowl die -offs occurred in two separate areas of Texas in the 1977 -1978 wintering season ; approximately 500 geese and 7 ,000 ducks succumbed to aflatoxicosis (Robinson et al . 1982 ) . |