An unusual strain of Pasteurella pestis isolated from a fatal human case of plague.

Rodents from which no fleas have been collected and which occur in the area are the domestic rat (Rattus rattus), the multimammate mouse (R. natalensis), the gerbil (Tatera schinzi (near) nyasae), the tree-rat (Rattus paedulcus) and tree-mouse Dendromus sp. With certain exceptions, such as Tatera taborae and Arvicanthis niloticus, the above host-species are likely to be found in the Luangwa Valley, some 200 miles (320 km) to the south-east.