Poor devils

Tasmanian devils are known for their bad tempers, hair-raising cries, and ability to eat just about anything--bones, fur, and all. The animals' wild behavior even inspired the whirling, snarling Looney Tunes character Taz. Despite their tough reputation, Tasmanian devils are losing the battle against a deadly illness called Devil Facial Tumor Disease.

Within months of contracting the disease, devils develop oozing facial tumors (a mass of cancerous cells) that make it difficult for the animals to eat or breathe. "The disease starts eating away at their face; it's very grotesque," says Rick Janser, manager of the Rio Grande Zoo in New Mexico.

"The disease was first seen in 1996, [and] at that time nobody really knew what it was," says Hamish McCallum, an ecologist at the University of Tasmania. After a decade, the cancerous condition has spread across most of the island of Tasmania--the only place in the world devils are found. It is now threatening the very survival of this marsupial (mammal that raises its young in a pouch).

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Scientists suspect the disease got its start when the cells of a single devil began to grow out of control. But somehow biting passes cancer cells from one devil to another. That confounded scientists, because an animal's disease-fighting immune system usually kills foreign cells. Scientists now believe the spread occurs because devils are all closely related to one another.

"Devils' genetics are similar enough that the [cancer] cells are not recognized, and no immune response is mounted against them," says Nick Mooney, a wildlife biologist at Tasmania's Department of Primary Industries.

There is no cure, and the disease is fatal. "We estimate that the total population of devils has declined by at least 50 percent," says McCallum.

To halt the spread, scientists are removing infected animals from the wild, researching a vaccine, and looking for disease-resistant devils. If that doesn't stop the disease, the Australian government has a backup plan to save the species: Place healthy devils in zoos, where they can breed in captivity away from infected animals. The Rio Grande Zoo recently completed a new exhibit that would be available for housing some of the endangered devils.

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