First report of Obeliscoides cuniculi in European brown hare (Lepus europaeus)

Tizzani, Paolo; Menzano, A.; Catalano, Stefano; Rossi, Luca; Meneguz, Pier Giuseppe

doi:10.1007/s00436-011-2375-7

Cited by 14 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…Indeed, in Italy T. calcaratus is found only in areas were the introduced cotton-tail rabbit is present, suggesting that the lagomorph likely acts as primary host of this nematode. Both these North American helminths had already been reported in Europe: T. calcaratus in alien cotton-tail rabbits [56] and S. robustus in a few Italian red squirrels co-inhabiting with grey squirrels [41]. All the other nematodes we found are Eurasian species: T. muris and T. retortaeformis are common parasites of wood mice ( Apodemus spp., [39]) and wild rabbits ( Oryctolagus cuniculus , [57]) respectively, A. annulosa is a generalist nematode infesting a wide variety of mammals [58], including squirrels (e.g.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 61%

Macroparasite Fauna of Alien Grey Squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis): Composition, Variability and Implications for Native Species

et al. 2014

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Introduced hosts populations may benefit of an "enemy release" through impoverishment of parasite communities made of both few imported species and few acquired local ones. Moreover, closely related competing native hosts can be affected by acquiring introduced taxa (spillover) and by increased transmission risk of native parasites (spillback). We determined the macroparasite fauna of invasive grey squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis) in Italy to detect any diversity loss, introduction of novel parasites or acquisition of local ones, and analysed variation in parasite burdens to identify factors that may increase transmission risk for native red squirrels (S. vulgaris). Based on 277 grey squirrels sampled from 7 populations characterised by different time scales in introduction events, we identified 7 gastro-intestinal helminths and 4 parasite arthropods. Parasite richness is lower than in grey squirrel's native range and independent from introduction time lags. The most common parasites are Nearctic nematodes Strongyloides robustus (prevalence: 56.6%) and Trichostrongylus calcaratus (6.5%), red squirrel flea Ceratophyllus sciurorum (26.0%) and Holarctic sucking louse Neohaematopinus sciuri (17.7%). All other parasites are European or cosmopolitan species with prevalence below 5%. S. robustus abundance is positively affected by host density and body mass, C. sciurorum abundance increases with host density and varies with seasons. Overall, we show that grey squirrels in Italy may benefit of an enemy release, and both spillback and spillover processes towards native red squirrels may occur.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 61%

Macroparasite Fauna of Alien Grey Squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis): Composition, Variability and Implications for Native Species

et al. 2014

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“…Apparent competition is another major consequence of introduced mammals, especially on islands when both a prey and a predator are introduced causing hyperpredation processes (Courchamp et al, 2000;Zhang et al, 2006). Its interactions with the native European hare Lepus europaeus are complex, because the two species select different macro-and microhabitats (Bertolino, Cordero di Montezemolo & Perrone, 2011aVidus-Rosin et al, 2011), but cottontails carry several viruses and parasites, which can potentially affect hares (Bertolino et al, 2010;Tizzani et al, 2011Tizzani et al, , 2014Zanet et al, 2013;Lavazza et al, 2015). As the various competitive dynamics arising with the introduction of invasive mammals can produce long-standing effects on ecosystems, assessing their structure and magnitude is crucial to design effective policies aimed at reducing the impact of invasive species meanwhile minimizing collateral damage to ecosystems (Bergstrom et al, 2009). This work aims at modeling the ecological impact of an invasive mammal in northern Italy.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The eastern cottontail Sylvilagus floridanus has been introduced in north-western Italy during the 1960s and it is now widespread in northern and central Italy (Bertolino, Ingegno & Girardello, 2011b;Bertolino et al, 2011c). Its interactions with the native European hare Lepus europaeus are complex, because the two species select different macro-and microhabitats (Bertolino, Cordero di Montezemolo & Perrone, 2011aVidus-Rosin et al, 2011), but cottontails carry several viruses and parasites, which can potentially affect hares (Bertolino et al, 2010;Tizzani et al, 2011Tizzani et al, , 2014Zanet et al, 2013;Lavazza et al, 2015). Finally, the red fox Vulpes vulpes, a major predator for hares in Europe (e.g.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rabbits killing hares: an invasive mammal modifies native predator–prey dynamics

Cerri

Ferretti

Bertolino

2017

Animal Conservation

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Invasive species management requires practical evidence of the impacts of introduced species over ecosystem structure and functioning. Theoretical ecology and empirical data support the potential of introduced mammals to drive native species to extinction, indeed the majority of practical evidence comes from insular environments, where conditions may differ from the mainland. We analyzed the effects of an introduced lagomorph, the eastern cottontail Sylvilagus floridanus on two native mammals, the European hare Lepus europaeus and the red fox Vulpes vulpes. We used relative abundances collected over 8 years at 30 protected areas in Italy. A generalized linear mixed model was fit to test various hypotheses about the relationships between cottontails, foxes and climatic conditions over the abundance of native hares. In our model, hare and cottontail abundances did not show a negative relationship and we believe that no direct competition occurs between the two species. However, the relationship between fox and hare abundances, positive when cottontails were scarce, became more and more negative as cottontails increased: this supports the hypothesis that indirect dynamics like apparent competition exists between the two lagomorphs. Climatic conditions, expressed through the North Atlantic Oscillation, did not affect the relationship between cottontail and hare abundances. As the impact of parasites on mammal populations is generally climate dependent, we believe that cottontails do not play a direct role in the cycle of parasites affecting hares. Our results provide a clue that an invasive mammal, the eastern cottontail, is modifying the predator-prey relationship between two native species in a non-insular environment. The existence of such dynamics should lead wildlife managers to account for the effect of introduced species in their decision making, directing control activities on cottontails and not on native foxes.

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“…Indeed, it has been demonstrated that the invasive Eastern cottontail poses a risk to native lagomorphs by introducing exotic parasites like Obeliscoides cuniculi or Trichostrongylus affinis [10][11][12]. Despite the fact that exotic pathogens infecting autochthonous species are frequently described in the literature [3,5,11,13], the infection of an alien species with native parasites is less frequent [14,15], at least in lagomorphs [13]. The spill-over of autochthonous parasites to invasive species is occasionally reported, either due to infection with low numbers of parasites or to limited diagnostic capabilities [15].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exotic Species and Autochthonous Parasites: Trichostrongylus Retortaeformis in Eastern Cottontail

Gontero

Fanelli

Zanet

et al. 2020

Life

Self Cite

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Introduction: A parasite community is usually well adapted and specific to the host species they co-evolved with. Although exotic pathogens infecting autochthonous species have been documented, the infection of an alien species with native parasites is rare in lagomorphs. Trichostrongylus retortaeformis is a nematode parasite infecting the small intestine of domestic and wild lagomorphs in Europe. Methods: Thirty-two Eastern cottontails from a naturalized population in Italy were processed to describe the gastrointestinal parasite community. Results and discussions: T. retortaeformis is reported for the first time in the Eastern cottontail Sylvilagus floridanus introduced to Europe. The Eastern cottontail is an invasive lagomorph, living in sympatry with the autochthonous European brown hare in certain areas of Italy. This study provides new insights into the dynamics of parasite communities of native and alien lagomorph species in sympatric areas.

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First report of Obeliscoides cuniculi in European brown hare (Lepus europaeus)

Cited by 14 publications

References 26 publications

Macroparasite Fauna of Alien Grey Squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis): Composition, Variability and Implications for Native Species

Macroparasite Fauna of Alien Grey Squirrels (Sciurus carolinensis): Composition, Variability and Implications for Native Species

Rabbits killing hares: an invasive mammal modifies native predator–prey dynamics

Exotic Species and Autochthonous Parasites: Trichostrongylus Retortaeformis in Eastern Cottontail

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