Renowned veterinarian, conservationist dies of West Nile in Maryland

John Cranfield said a medical examiner listed the virus as an official cause of death for his brother, who began working at the Maryland Zoo in 1982 and consulted until his death. Michael Cranfield appears to have contracted West Nile during a two-week trip to Canada, his brother said.

The case has not been confirmed by the Maryland Department of Health.

Forty-four states have reported 1,645 human cases of the disease this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, mostly in the southwestern part of the country, with almost one in three reported in Colorado. In the Washington region, Maryland has reported six preliminary cases; Virginia has reported seven and the District has one. Last month, the Maryland Health Department confirmed one of its cases — an adult on the Eastern Shore.

The virus, which is not transmissible among people, mainly spreads to humans through the bite of infected mosquitoes. There are no vaccines to protect people from contracting the virus and no effective treatments for it, though deaths from West Nile in the United States have been uncommon.

The virus was first detected in 1937 in the West Nile region of Uganda and made its first appearance in the United States in 1999, in New York City. In the 24 years since, 56,569 cases have been reported in the United States, and 2,773 people have died, according to the CDC.

About 1 in 5 people who are infected develop a fever, and about 1 in 150 infected people develop a serious illness, but many never even feel sick, according to the CDC. To reduce the risk of the virus, health officials suggest using insect repellent and wearing long-sleeved shirts and pants to prevent mosquito bites during the summer and fall months, which is typically mosquito season.

“We want [news about] the West Nile to be out there so people are aware it’s coming back,” John Cranfield said, while also noting deaths from West Nile are rare. “There’s more and more cases being reported everywhere. And so people need to be aware.”

A native of Peterborough, Ontario, Michael Cranfield spent his early years in veterinary practice there.

John Cranfield said his brother developed a passion for animals and nature when he was young.

He worked summers at the local zoo, and after obtaining his veterinarian degree he “did a kind of Noah’s Ark,” transporting a group of exotic animals on a boat from North America to Japan to help set up a new zoo, his brother said.

After a stint at the Toronto Zoo, Michael Cranfield moved to Maryland in 1982 and began work at its zoo as the chief veterinarian. He later became the director of animal health, research and conservation, responsible for the zoo’s more than 1,500 animals.

In 1998, he became the director of the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project, a nonprofit dedicated to saving the lives of critically endangered mountain gorillas living in Rwanda, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Under the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary Project — which later became Gorilla Doctors — veterinarians would go to the habitat of the gorillas and provide medication and medical procedures.

For years, Michael Cranfield would split his time between overseeing operations in Africa, fundraising on the road and administering the project from his base at the zoo in Baltimore.

“Mike was an icon, One Health pioneer, and hero to wildlife conservation and so many people around the world,” the Gorilla Doctors team said in a statement. “Mike contributed immeasurably to the recovery of mountain gorillas in Rwanda, Uganda, and DR Congo [Democratic Republic of Congo], one of the few conservation success stories on our planet.”

An avid sailor, Michael Cranfield was described by one of his mentees as easygoing and very practical.

“He was very skilled at what he did,” said Ellen Bronson, senior director of animal health, conservation and research at the Maryland Zoo, which has planned a memorial on Oct. 14. She said he created a veterinary health program for the animals at the zoo in the 1980s, a move that was “very cutting edge at the time.”

In addition to his work with primates, zoo officials said Michael Cranfield, who published numerous articles, conducted research on African penguins and avian malaria.

“He really laid the groundwork for a lot of the understanding that we have of some of these animal diseases,” Bronson said.