Helminth parasites in native and invasive mammal populations: comparative study on the Barbary ground squirrel Atlantoxerus getulus L. (Rodentia, Sciuridae) in Morocco and the Canary Islands

López-Darias, Marta; Ribas, Alexis; Feliú, Carlos

doi:10.2478/s11686-008-0036-5

Cited by 16 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 29 publications

(31 reference statements)

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“…Our study suggests that the low parasite species richness in the wood mouse at the study site in Algeria could be the consequence of the human introduction of this host. The loss of parasites in the event of a host introduction has been reported in introduced populations of A. sylvaticus on islands (Goüy de Bellocq et al, 2003), and in other rodents such as the squirrel Atlantoxerus getulus, introduced into the Canary Islands from Morocco (López-Darias et al, 2008). However, it is important to note that the small sample size in our study probably underestimates the full parasite specific richness, as indicated by Feliu et al (1997).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 56%

Helminth parasites in the wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus) from Algeria

et al. 2021

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Helminth parasites of the wood mouse Apodemus sylvaticus (Rodentia, Murinae) were studied for the first time in Algeria. Fifty mice from Mizrana forest were examined in 2017. Our results showed a general prevalence of 82 % and a six species of helminths: four nematodes (Heligmosomoides polygyrus, Syphacia stroma, Syphacia frederici and Rictularia sp.) and two cestodes (Hymenolepis sp. and Hydatigera parva larvae). The most prevalent species was S. stroma (52.0 %), followed by S. frederici (46 %) and H. polygyrus (26 %). Infection rates in the analysed mice were higher in Nematoda (70 %) than in Cestoda (12 %). Host age was the most important factor determining the prevalence of helminth species, with adults being the most infected group. The differences were significant. No differences in prevalence were observed related to host sex or seasonality.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 56%

Helminth parasites in the wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus) from Algeria

et al. 2021

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“…These hypotheses have been considered to explain the lack of helminth richness in two other introduced mammal species on the Canary Islands, i.e. the rabbit Oryctolagus cuniculus (L., 1758) [ 18 ] and the Barbary ground squirrel Atlantoxerus getulus (L., 1758) [ 19 ].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Distribution and genetic variation of hymenolepidid cestodes in murid rodents on the Canary Islands (Spain)

Foronda¹,

López-González²,

Hernández³

et al. 2011

Parasites Vectors

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BackgroundIn the Canary Islands there are no previous data about tapeworms (Cestoda) of rodents. In order to identify the hymenolepidid species present in these hosts, a survey of 1,017 murine (349 Rattus rattus, 13 Rattus norvegicus and 655 Mus musculus domesticus) was carried out in the whole Archipelago. Molecular studies based on nuclear ITS1 and mitochondrial COI loci were performed to confirm the identifications and to analyse the levels of genetic variation and differentiation.ResultsThree species of hymenolepidids were identified: Hymenolepis diminuta, Rodentolepis microstoma and Rodentolepis fraterna. Hymenolepis diminuta (in rats) and R. microstoma (in mice) showed a widespread distribution in the Archipelago, and R. fraterna was the least spread species, appearing only on five of the islands. The hymenolepidids found on Fuerteventura, Lanzarote and La Graciosa were restricted to one area. The COI network of H. diminuta showed that the haplotypes from Lanzarote and Fuerteventura are the most distant with respect to the other islands, but clearly related among them.ConclusionsFounder effects and biotic and abiotic factors could have played important role in the presence/absence of the hymenolepidid species in determined locations. The haplotypes from the eastern islands (Fuerteventura and Lanzarote) seem to have shared an ancestral haplotype very distant from the most frequent one that was found in the rest of the islands. Two colonization events or a single event with subsequent isolation and reduced gene flow between western-central and eastern islands, have taken place in the Archipelago. The three tapeworms detected are zoonotic species, and their presence among rodents from this Archipelago suggests a potential health risk to human via environmental contamination in high risk areas. However, the relatively low prevalence of infestations detected and the focal distribution of some of these species on certain islands reduce the general transmission risk to human.

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“…The species has negative ecological, economical, and public health impacts. They consume native and endemic snails (Machado and Domínguez 1982;Groh and García 2004;López-Darias 2007), prey upon some critically endangered species (Bañares et al 2003), and feed upon the eggs of small native and endemic passerine birds (López-Darias 2007). Their ecological impacts go beyond direct predation upon species, as they alter plant-animal interactions of fleshy-fruited plant species and ruderal weeds, including herbaceous plants of native or introduced origin (López- Darias andNogales 2008, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…They consume native and endemic snails (Machado and Domínguez 1982;Groh and García 2004;López-Darias 2007), prey upon some critically endangered species (Bañares et al 2003), and feed upon the eggs of small native and endemic passerine birds (López-Darias 2007). Their ecological impacts go beyond direct predation upon species, as they alter plant-animal interactions of fleshy-fruited plant species and ruderal weeds, including herbaceous plants of native or introduced origin (López- Darias andNogales 2008, 2016). Competition with the endemic shrew, Crocidura canariensis, listed as vulnerable by the IUCN (Hutterer 2008), is suggested Traveset et al 2009), but no quantitative and conclusive data are available.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the role of life history traits and introduction effort in understanding invasion success in mammals: a case study of Barbary ground squirrels

2021

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Invasive species-species that have successfully overcome the barriers of transport, introduction, establishment, and spreadare a risk to biodiversity and ecosystem function. Introduction effort is one of the main factors underlying invasion success, but life history traits are also important as they influence population growth. In this contribution, we first investigated life history traits of the Barbary ground squirrel, Atlantoxerus getulus, a species with a very low introduction effort. We then studied if their invasion success was due to a very fast life history profile by comparing their life history traits to those of other successful invasive mammals. Next, we examined whether the number of founders and/or a fast life history influences the invasion success of squirrels. Barbary ground squirrels were on the fast end of the "fast-slow continuum", but their life history was not the only contributing factor to their invasion success, as the life history profile is comparable to other invasive species that do not have such a low introduction effort. We also found that neither life history traits nor the number of founders explained the invasion success of introduced squirrels in general. These results contradict the concept that introduction effort is the main factor explaining invasion success, especially in squirrels. Instead, we argue that invasion success can be influenced by multiple aspects of the new habitat or the biology of the introduced species.

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Helminth parasites in native and invasive mammal populations: comparative study on the Barbary ground squirrel Atlantoxerus getulus L. (Rodentia, Sciuridae) in Morocco and the Canary Islands

Cited by 16 publications

References 29 publications

Helminth parasites in the wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus) from Algeria

Helminth parasites in the wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus) from Algeria

Distribution and genetic variation of hymenolepidid cestodes in murid rodents on the Canary Islands (Spain)

Exploring the role of life history traits and introduction effort in understanding invasion success in mammals: a case study of Barbary ground squirrels

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