Body condition variation of wild rabbit population in the north-east Mediterranean island of Lemnos — Greece

Kontsiotis, Vasileios J.; Bakaloudis, Dimitrios E.; Tsiompanoudis, A.; Xofis, Panteleimon

doi:10.25225/fozo.v63.i2.a6.2014

Cited by 10 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…Consequently, the national legislation of Greece has made provisions for the legal hunting of wild rabbits from late August to early March in this specific area (FEK 3515 B' 2 August 2021), aiming to control overpopulation via hunting pressure. This wild rabbit population gained scientific attention in terms of their geographical distribution and the reasons that led to their overpopulation, its effects on agro-ecosystems [56,58], the body condition variation in the population, and the possible management plans to ensure control or conservation [59], including the way that this problem could be turned to opportunity through marketing and tourism [60] and its veterinary and public health importance [61,62].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hepatic Coccidiosis in Wild Rabbits in Greece: Parasite Detection on Liver Imprints and the Associated Biochemical Profile

Athanasiou

Tsokana

Doukas

et al. 2023

Veterinary Sciences

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(1) Background: Rabbit hepatic coccidiosis, caused by Eimeria stiedae, is a devastating disease with high morbidity and mortality rates. The disease is well described in rabbits, but little is known about E. stiedae infection in wild rabbits. In this study, we investigated the presence of E. stiedae infection in wild rabbits from the island of Lemnos, Greece, where this species is overpopulated, and the effects of infection on common hepatic biomarkers. (2) Methods: We used liver impression smears to detect the coccidian oocysts, and we defined the liver biochemical profile of the infected individuals. (3) Results: Overall, 13.3% of the liver imprints examined were positive for the presence of coccidial oocysts. The activities of liver enzymes, that is, alanine aminotransferase (ALT), aspartate aminotransferase (AST) and glutamyltransferase (GGT), as well as globulins (GLOB), were increased while the concentrations of albumins (ALB), total proteins (TP) and the albumin to globulin (A/G) ratio were decreased in the infected individuals compared to the non-infected ones. (4) Conclusions: This study adds to the current knowledge on the pathogens affecting wild rabbits and those circulating in this population on the island of Lemnos, Greece. Moreover, we showed that E. stiedae infection exerts pathological effects on the hepatocyte integrity and liver function of wild rabbits, as reflected by the abnormal values of liver injury and dysfunction biomarkers.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Hepatic Coccidiosis in Wild Rabbits in Greece: Parasite Detection on Liver Imprints and the Associated Biochemical Profile

Athanasiou

Tsokana

Doukas

et al. 2023

Veterinary Sciences

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“…Although wild rabbit seems to have adapted to the seasonal changes of food availability and quality, by shifting its trophic strategy, during the critical dry season decreases in population growth rate inevitably occur (Kontsiotis et al 2013a). On insular ecosystems, the availability and quality of food affects population dynamics, exerting a direct or indirect impact on their interrelated physiological processes, such as the onset and duration of reproductive period (Kontsiotis 2011), the body condition (Kontsiotis et al 2014), the population growth rate and the mortality (Kontsiotis et al 2013a). Given that, a habitat management based on the trophic ecology of the species on insular ecosystems can significantly alter the habitat's carrying capacity and efficiently control or conserve its population.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The island of Lemnos exhibits three important peculiarities compared to other continental and insular environments, namely, the absence of viral diseases, the rather limited predation pressure and the absence of any effective wild rabbit management program (Kontsiotis et al 2013b). Despite its introduction in the area since the antiquity, the dramatic increase of its population observed in early 1990s, has turned it into a major agricultural and environmental pest, with devastating effects on local economy and ecosystem integrity (Kontsiotis et al 2013a(Kontsiotis et al , 2014. Given that food availability and quality has a strong effect on population dynamics in insular environments (Kontsiotis et al 2013a), the study of its trophic ecology is of particular importance in understanding the cascade effects of the species population fluctuation in ecosystem integrity and agricultural economy.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Trophic ecology of the European wild rabbitOryctolagus cuniculuson the Mediterranean island of Lemnos, Greece

Kontsiotis

Bakaloudis

Merou

et al. 2015

Ecological Research

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The European wild rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) is a species with a wide distribution across the globe and a contradicting role in the ecological integrity of ecosystems and local economies. Despite the considerable amount of research that has been conducted on the trophic ecology of the species in continental environments, similar studies in insular environments are still fairly scarce. The article examines the trophic ecology of wild rabbit, using microhistological analysis to study its annual dietary composition in relation to the availability and quality of food sources, in two different habitats of a northeast Mediterranean island. A total of 112 species were found to participate, to a lower or greater degree, in the species diet across the year. The available food sources, as well as the identified food items, were classified in three feeding functional groups (FFGs), namely, grasses, forbs and parts of woody plants. Wild rabbit follows a diverse diet having adapted to the seasonal changes in the availability and quality of food sources. Forbs is the FFG which constitutes the main food source of the species, while grasses and parts of woody plants form occasionally an important component of its diet. The FFG of grasses is almost constantly preferred in both habitat types and plays a deterministic role in the trophic ecology of wild rabbit. During the critical dry season, where the availability of high quality food becomes limited, the species preferably consumes taxa that are generally less palatable and even toxic in its struggle for survival.

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“…In Lemnos island, WR were likely introduced by the Phoenicians and/or Romans (Kontsiotis et al, 2014). However, there is a significant increase of their population due to economic and social reasons, such as the abandonment of farmland in numerous rural areas and the expansion of tourism (Vasios et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Transforming wild rabbits’ overpopulation problem into a local biotic resource of Lemnos island

Gialeli,

Vasios,

Zaragkali

et al.

Global NEST International Conference on Environmental Science &Amp; Technology

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For more than 20 years, the European Wild Rabbit (WR) (Oryctolagus Cuniculus) is considered a pest in Lemnos island, Greece, due to significant crop damage. Authorities took insufficient actions to control WR overpopulation, resulting only in managing its effect on crop losses with farmers’ compensation. The current study aims to redefine the WR problem in Lemnos by transforming the WR population to a local commodity, where hunting could supply the local market (restaurants and butcheries) with WR products. Semi-structured qualitative interviews from local stakeholders were analyzed using content analysis, to identify their priorities on the WR problem. Additionally, relative local press articles (2016–2021) were recorded and analyzed qualitatively. Furthermore, European and National legal framework was studied to understand the implementation of hunting and selling procedures of WR in local markets. The main events’ timeline of the WR overpopulation problem was identified and the stakeholders’ key points were combined to create a viable solution. These highlights include the affected areas of interest, hunting processes, and local interest in the supply and demand of WR consumption. The national legislation on hunting and selling of WR at the local market was identified, and its activation is proposed for turning the WR into a sustainable product of local gastronomy. The present research and the APC were funded by EPAnEk-NRSF 2014-2020; Operational Program “Competitiveness, Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Call 111 “Support of Regional Excellence” in the context of the implementation of the program: AGRICA II: AGrifood Research and Innovation Network of ExCellence of the Aegean, which is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), MIS code: 5046750.

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Body condition variation of wild rabbit population in the north-east Mediterranean island of Lemnos — Greece

Cited by 10 publications

References 38 publications

Hepatic Coccidiosis in Wild Rabbits in Greece: Parasite Detection on Liver Imprints and the Associated Biochemical Profile

Hepatic Coccidiosis in Wild Rabbits in Greece: Parasite Detection on Liver Imprints and the Associated Biochemical Profile

Trophic ecology of the European wild rabbitOryctolagus cuniculuson the Mediterranean island of Lemnos, Greece

Transforming wild rabbits’ overpopulation problem into a local biotic resource of Lemnos island

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