Interspecific oral rabies vaccine bait competition in the Southeast United States

Dixon, Wesley C.; Hill, J. E.; Chipman, Richard B.; Davis, Amy J.; Gilbert, Amy T.; Beasley, James C.; Rhodes, Olin E.; Dharmarajan, Guha

doi:10.1016/j.applanim.2023.105897

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…We did not find evidence that land cover type influenced bait consumption in any of our models. In contrast, a study using cameras to examine bait competition on the SRS during fall reported higher raccoon probability of uptake in bottomland hardwood than in upland pine (Dixon 2021). Estimated bait consumption probability by species in that study was also low, with estimated uptake of approximately 18% for raccoons and 5% for opossums.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 84%

Assessment of habitat‐specific competition for oral rabies vaccine baits between raccoons and opossums

et al. 2023

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Throughout the eastern United States, the National Rabies Management Program (NRMP) distributes oral rabies vaccine (ORV) baits to manage rabies virus circulation in raccoon (Procyon lotor) populations. The consumption of vaccine baits by non‐target species including Virginia opossums (Didelphis virginiana) may reduce the effectiveness of ORV programs, but competition for baits remains poorly quantified in many areas of the southeastern United States. We distributed placebo ORV baits injected with a biomarker across 4 land cover types (bottomland hardwood, upland pine, riparian, isolated wetland) on the Savannah River Site in South Carolina, USA, 2017–2019. We then trapped and collected whiskers from 247 raccoons and 78 opossums to assess biomarker presence using fluorescent microscopy. Our data revealed greater bait uptake probability by raccoons (estimated x̅ = 0.30, 95% CI = 0.19–0.44) compared to opossums (estimated x̅ = 0.11, 95% CI = 0.05–0.23) across all cover types surveyed. Probability of bait consumption was not affected by cover type or the abundance of raccoons or opossums. Among raccoons, males were more likely to consume baits than females (estimated x̅ = 0.28, 95% CI = 0.17–0.44 for males and 0.14, 95% CI = 0.05–0.31 for females) and probability of consumption increased by 0.08 with each additional day trapped during the 10‐day trapping session. Uptake rates for raccoons were relatively low compared to other studies and not influenced by competition with opossums. These low consumption rates indicate that additional research addressing the roles of baiting season, bait density, and resource selection will be important to maximize ORV bait uptake by target species in these southeastern landscapes.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 84%

Assessment of habitat‐specific competition for oral rabies vaccine baits between raccoons and opossums

et al. 2023

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“…Although this relationship between the number of opossums captured and raccoon seroprevalence only occurred in low development, it suggests potential bait competition between opossums and raccoons. Opossums made up one third of all nontargets captured during our study and have been recognized as bait competitors with raccoons previously (Olson and Werner 1999;Olson et al 2000;Smyser et al 2010;Dixon et al 2023).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Oral Rabies Vaccination of Raccoons (Procyon Lotor) Across a Development Intensity Gradient in Burlington, Vermont, Usa, 2015–2017

Beasley,

Nelson,

Slate

et al. 2024

Journal of Wildlife Diseases

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“…Lower bait densities of 37/km 2 have also been postulated for areas where raccoons exist at low densities (Slate et al 2020) and given our findings, this baiting regimen may be appropriate across the rural non-agricultural land cover types we considered. Factors other than bait density, however, such as target species uptake rates and competition with vertebrates and invertebrates also influence effective baiting densities (Dixon et al 2023, Helton et al 2023; an understanding of these factors is important when determining appropriate bait densities.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Raccoon densities across four land cover types in the southeastern United States

Hill,

Helton,

Bernasconi

et al. 2023

J Wildl Manag

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Raccoons (Procyon lotor) are the primary reservoir for rabies virus in eastern North America. Management of rabies in raccoons is achieved primarily with the use of oral rabies vaccination (ORV) and effective ORV bait densities are determined in part by the densities of raccoons. Decisions regarding ORV bait densities, however, are limited by an incomplete understanding of raccoon densities across the spectrum of landscapes they occupy. We carried out a mark‐recapture study of raccoons on the Savannah River Site in South Carolina, USA, from 2017–2019, to develop sex‐ and landscape‐specific raccoon density estimates across 4 rural land cover types in the southeastern United States: bottomland hardwood, riparian forest, isolated wetland, and upland pine (Pinus spp.). We captured 404 unique raccoons 773 times over the 3‐year trapping period. Estimated densities were 5.44 ± 0.37 (SE) animals/km2 in bottomland hardwood forest, 2.62 ± 0.32 animals/km2 in riparian forest, 2.19 ± 0.29 animals/km2 in isolated wetlands, and 2.14 ± 0.23 animals/km2 in upland pine. Densities were significantly higher in bottomland hardwood than all other land cover types, whereas densities among the remaining cover types were similar. These patterns are likely the result of landscape fragmentation and configuration, with riparian forests typically embedded in a matrix of less suitable cover types, leading to low densities despite presumably high resource availability. There were higher densities of males than females in every cover type except upland pine, where the sex ratio was balanced. Densities on our site were low compared to other rural areas, which likely results from the lack of human influence in terms of agriculture or development. The financial cost of baiting for ORV distribution may be reduced by considering the comparatively low densities of raccoons in these rural landscapes in the southeastern United States.

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Interspecific oral rabies vaccine bait competition in the Southeast United States

Cited by 6 publications

References 27 publications

Assessment of habitat‐specific competition for oral rabies vaccine baits between raccoons and opossums

Assessment of habitat‐specific competition for oral rabies vaccine baits between raccoons and opossums

Oral Rabies Vaccination of Raccoons (Procyon Lotor) Across a Development Intensity Gradient in Burlington, Vermont, Usa, 2015–2017

Raccoon densities across four land cover types in the southeastern United States

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