Does land use within the home range drive the exposure of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) to two abortive pathogens in a rural agro-ecosystem?

Abstract

The recent increase in interactions between wildlife and domestic animals has heightened the risks of transmission of pathogens between wildlife, livestock, and humans. Our objective was to better understand how the spatial behavior of wildlife impacts their exposure to pathogens. We carried out a 5-year serological survey of Toxoplasma gondii and Chlamydia abortus in a roe deer population (Capreolus capreolus) living in a rural landscape and monitored using GPS technology. We tested whether the apparent seroprevalence of these pathogens was related to the characteristics of roe deer's home range, indirectly reflecting the probability of contact between deer and domestic hosts (cats for T. gondii and ruminants for C. abortus). We controlled for the effects of temperature and rainfall, as local weather can affect pathogen survival in the environment. Overall, apparent seroprevalences were 43.7 and 15.8 % for T. gondii (N=135) and C. abortus (N=133), respectively. The apparent seroprevalence to T. gondii increased with the proportion of human dwellings (a proxy of cat presence) within the roe deer's core home range and was higher during mild and wet years. This result illustrates how the spatial behavior of wild animals can modulate their exposure to pathogens through the degree of spatial overlap with a domestic host. By contrast, apparent seroprevalence to C. abortus increased with the annual number of frosty days but not with the proportion of meadows occupied by domestic ruminants within the core home range. This suggests that the cycle of C. abortus in wild animals could be somewhat independent from that in livestock.

A systematic review and meta‐analysis of Toxoplasma gondii in roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) and red deer (Cervus elaphus) in Europe

“…The most common was MAT, used in 6/10 studies in roe deer and 4/8 in red deer. Only two studies reported the sensitivity and specificity of the serological test used; one in roe deer (Sevila et al., 2014) and one in red deer (Formenti et al., 2015). As regards the sample tested, all the studies used serum, with the exception of Rocchigiani et al., (2016) and Witkowski et al.…”

“…The total number of animals tested was 3,913 for roe deer and 2,913 for red deer. As shown in Tables 3 and 4, deer (Sevila et al, 2014) and one in red deer (Formenti et al, 2015).…”

“…Lukášová et al (2017) whose paper used the same population ofBartova et al (2007).•Candela et al (2014) whose paper used the same population ofSevila et al(2014) • Sroka, 2001 andLopes et al (2011). because of the small sample size (⩽3).…”

Relationship between the excretion of eggs of parasitic helminths in roe deer and local livestock density

“…They have a higher body mass than forest individuals (Hewison et al ., 2009). However, they can also be more exposed to parasites hosted by domestic species, such as oocysts of Toxoplasma gondii excreted by cats (Sevila et al ., 2014).…”

East-West Divide: temperature and land cover drive spatial variation of Toxoplasma gondii infection in Eurasian otters (Lutra lutra) from England and Wales

“…Sporulation of oocysts is inhibited below −6 °C (Dumètre and Dardé, 2003), but at 25 °C they remain viable in water for over 200 days (Dubey, 1998). Generally, infection of wildlife is associated with mild, moist environments experiencing infrequent periods of freezing (Dubey and Beattie, 1988; Afonso et al 2013; Sevila et al 2014).…”