No abstract

Dogs and cats are potential sources of infection for some zoonotic diseases such as Q fever, caused by Coxiella burnetii, a multiple host pathogen. Q fever outbreaks in dogs and cats have been related with parturition and abortion events, and ticks have a potential role in the transmission of this pathogen. This study aimed to screen for C. burnetii in dogs and cats, and in ticks collected from infested animals. An observational descriptive study was conducted in Portugal at two time points nine years apart, 2012 and 2021. Sera obtained from dogs and cats (total n = 294) were tested for C. burnetii antibodies using a commercial ELISA adapted for multi-species detection. C. burnetii DNA was screened by qPCR assay targeting IS1111 in uterine samples and in ticks. A decrease in the exposure to C. burnetii was observed in cats from 17.2% (95% CI: 5.8–35.8%) in 2012 to 0.0% in 2021, and in dogs from 12.6% (95% CI: 7.7–19.0%) in 2012 to 1.7% (95% CI: 0.3–9.1%) in 2021 (p < 0.05). Overall, and despite differences in the samples, rural habitat seems to favour the exposure to C. burnetii. The DNA of C. burnetii was not detected in ticks. The low seropositivity observed in 2021 and the absence of C. burnetii DNA in the tested samples, suggest that dogs and cats from Portugal are not often exposed to the pathogen. Nevertheless, the monitoring of C. burnetii infection in companion animals is an important tool to prevent human outbreaks, considering the zoonotic potential for owners and veterinarians contacting infected animals, mainly dogs and cats from rural areas which often come into contact with livestock.

A case of multi‐male spawning between two males and one female of Rhaebo guttatus is reported. An amplectant pair of R. guttatus was observed spawning in an ephemeral puddle located in a flooded area of a stream inside an open ombrophilous forest remnant on 31st January 2019, in the municipality of Cotriguaçu, north‐western Mato Grosso state, Brazil. To our surprise, a conspecific male (secondary male) was submerged with its belly up, nostrils out of the water and clasping the female by the ventral region, apparently, trying to fertilise the eggs. For Neotropical anurans, multi‐male spawning has been reported to occur in eight phyllomedusid and four leptodactylid species. Therefore, it is the first record of conspecific multi‐male spawning for R. guttatus. These observations provide new insights into the breeding biology of R. guttatus. Further studies, however, are needed to better understand the reproductive features, focusing on genetic analyses of the offspring produced from multi‐male spawning of R. guttatus to determine whether multiple paternity occurs in this toad species.

Boana icamiaba is an Amazonian anuran species reported for sites in the mid-lower Madeira-Rio Tapajós River and lower Tapajós-Rio, and Xingu River interfluves – municipalities of Juruti, Altamira, Santarém, and Itaituba, state of Pará, northern Brazil. We provided the first records of Boana icamiaba for the states of Mato Grosso and Rondônia, central and northern Brazil, which enlarges the knowledge on its distribution in approximately 470 km southmost and circa 886 km southwestmost from the nearest previously recorded locality.