People who have contracted West Nile virus from infected mosquitoes – even those with some serious neurological complications – can take heart that they will fully recover over time, Canadian researchers say.

In a 2003-2007 study of 156 Canadians afflicted with West Nile virus disease, including some who developed potentially fatal meningitis and encephalitis, the average time to recovery was about a year, said principal investigator Dr. Mark Loeb, an infectious disease specialist at McMaster University.

Three animals shot dead in the past two weeks; weather partly to blame for unwelcome visits. Out of the blue and into the house came something furry and black.

Out of the house ran nanny Nancy Anemba when she realized just what kind of intruder had shoved its way inside.

The latest home invasion wave to hit Metro Vancouver coincided with a heat wave. Residents leaving their doors and windows open to ward off the heat have been luring in black bears.

The first human case of West Nile Virus this year in Ontario has been confirmed after a 28-year-old Markham woman tested positive for the virus. The woman is believed to have contracted the virus in the Major Mackenzie Dr. E. and Highway 48 area, York Region's community and health services department said.

An early morning stroll on garbage day in our leafy east-end neighbourhood is not a pretty sight. There are always a few tipped over green bins, the contents strewn across the sidewalk, leftovers from a midnight feast by marauding raccoons. The bins that survived the night sport a variety of straps, chains, hooks, wires and bungee cords to keep the critters at bay - a nod to the ingenuity of residents fed up with scooping up too many disgusting messes from the sidewalk.

Toronto's summer of the umbrella has helped cause an explosion of small animals, bringing many unusual sightings of rabbits and groundhogs and causing havoc for golf course grounds crews.

"There weren't very many butterflies around at all," recalled Carolyn King, a butterfly enthusiast who attends a handful of spotting expeditions each year. But after a frustrating few hours her partner, Steven LaForest, found something – a tiny blue and brown critter neither of them had seen here before.

She detected the bluff and said, gently, "Many mosquitoes exist in species complexes; that is, two or more species may look identical, but some can transmit malaria and some can't. We're trying to figure out what makes a mosquito a good vector."

Scientists will today unveil the first genome-wide map of the spinal cord of the mouse, a move experts say will accelerate research – and point to potential treatments – in human spinal cord diseases.

The map, dubbed the Allen Spinal Cord Atlas, charts the genetic activity within the mouse spinal cord and will help researchers understand various diseases and disorders, including ALS, multiple sclerosis, paralysis and other spinal cord injuries.

The experts at London's Natural History Museum pride themselves on being able to identify species from around the globe, from birds and mammals to insects and snakes.

The small, blacklegged ticks that cause Lyme disease are popping up in new regions across the country, prompting the Public Health Agency of Canada to develop new maps to educate the public about the spreading risk.