BackgroundFew serological tests are available for detecting antibodies against Mycoplasma capricolum subsp. capripneumoniae, the causal agent of contagious caprine pleuropneumonia (CCPP). The complement fixation test, the test prescribed for international trade purposes, uses a crude antigen that cross-reacts with all the other mycoplasma species of the “mycoides cluster” frequently infecting goat herds. The lack of a more specific test has been a real obstacle to the evaluation of the prevalence and economic impact of CCPP worldwide. A new competitive ELISA kit for CCPP, based on a previous blocking ELISA, was formatted at CIRAD and used to evaluate the prevalence of CCPP in some regions of Kenya, Ethiopia, Mauritius, Tajikistan and Pakistan in an international collaborative study.ResultsThe strict specificity of the test was confirmed in CCPP-free goat herds exposed to other mycoplasma species of the “mycoides cluster”. Prevalence studies were performed across the enzootic range of the disease in Africa and Asia. Seroprevalence was estimated at 14.6% in the Afar region of Ethiopia, whereas all the herds presented for CCPP vaccination in Kenya tested positive (individual seroprevalence varied from 6 to 90% within each herd). In Mauritius, where CCPP emerged in 2009, nine of 62 herds tested positive. In Central Asia, where the disease was confirmed only recently, no positive animals were detected in the Wakhan District of Afghanistan or across the border in neighboring areas of Tajikistan, whereas seroprevalence varied between 2.7% and 44.2% in the other districts investigated and in northern Pakistan. The test was also used to monitor seroconversion in vaccinated animals.ConclusionsThis newly formatted CCPP cELISA kit has retained the high specificity of the original kit. It can therefore be used to evaluate the prevalence of CCPP in countries or regions without vaccination programs. It could also be used to monitor the efficacy of vaccination campaigns as high-quality vaccines induce high rates of seroconversion.

No abstract

We surveyed the urial Ovis vignei and Siberian ibex Capra sibirica in the Hindu Kush mountain range of Wakhan National Park in north-eastern Afghanistan to determine their population status and identify potential drivers of population change. We conducted two double-observer ground surveys, in April–May 2015 and 2018, in 10 areas (total = 288 km2). Urial herds were mostly composed of both sexes (78% of observed herds), the mean adult sex ratio (females:males) was 100:70, and the mean female:juvenile ratio was 100:53. In 2018 we calculated a urial density of 35/100 km2, compared to 72/100 km2 in 2015. Ibex herds were mostly (79%) composed of both sexes, the mean adult sex ratio (females:males) was 100:103, and the mean female:juvenile ratio was 100:58. Ibex density estimates were similar in 2015 and 2018 (c. 250/100 km2). We discuss the usefulness of the double-observer methods for ungulate surveys, highlight the value of viewshed calculations and discuss the possible causes of urial population decline. To ensure the conservation of these ungulate populations, we recommend continued regular monitoring, measures to address poaching and research to clarify the taxonomical status of urials in Wakhan.

We provide body measurements of snow leopards collected from 55 individuals sampled in five of the major mountain ranges within the species distribution range; the Altai, Hindu Kush, Himalayas, Pamirs and Tien Shan mountains. Snow leopards appear to be similarly sized across their distribution range with mean body masses of 36 kg and 42 kg for adult females and adult males, respectively. In contrast to other large felids, we found little variation in body size and body mass between the sexes; adult males were on average 5% longer and 15% heavier than adult females.