Sanitary Emergencies at the Wild/Domestic Caprines Interface in Europe

Abstract

Simple SummaryEven if it is an important achievement from a biodiversity conservation perspective, the documented increase in abundance of the four native European wild Caprinae (Rupicapra rupicapra, R. pyrenaica, Capra ibex, C. pyrenaica) can also be a matter of concern, since tighter and more frequent contact with sympatric livestock implies a greater risk of transmission of emerging and re-emerging pathogens. This article reviews the main transmissible diseases that, in a European scenario, are of greater significance from a conservation perspective. Epidemics causing major demographic downturns in wild Caprinae populations during recent decades were often triggered by pathogens transmitted at the livestock/wildlife interface. AbstractPopulation density and distribution of the four native European wild Caprines (Rupicapra rupicapra, Rupicapra pyrenaica, Capra ibex, Capra pyrenaica) have increased in recent decades. The improved conservation status of this valuable wildlife, while a welcome event in general terms, is at the same time a matter of concern since, intuitively, frequent and tighter contacts with sympatric livestock imply a greater risk of cross-transmission of emerging and re-emerging pathogens, and offer unexpected opportunities for pathogens to spread, persist and evolve. This article recalls the transmissible diseases that are perceived in Europe to be of major significance from a conservation perspective, namely brucellosis (BRC) by Brucella melitensis, infectious kerato-conjunctivitis (IKC) by Mycoplasma conjunctivae, pestivirosis (PV) by the border disease virus strain 4 and mange by Sarcoptes scabiei. Special emphasis has been put on the epidemiological role played by small domestic ruminants, and on key knowledge needed to implement evidence-based prevention and control strategies. Remarkably, scientific evidence demonstrates that major demographic downturns in affected wild Caprinae populations in recent decades have often been triggered by pathogens cross-transmitted at the livestock/wildlife interface.

Sarcoptic mange in wild ruminants in Spain: solving the epidemiological enigma using microsatellite markers

“…In multi-host scenarios, the more susceptible species would act as a reservoir, spreading sarcoptic mange to less susceptible hosts, which would likely not be capable of maintaining the transmission chain in the absence of the source host(s), as suspected in Cantabrian chamois (reservoir host) and red and roe deer (spillover hosts) in the Cantabrian Mountains [ 4 , 8 , 12 ]. A similar pattern has been reported in the Alps, where the northern chamois ( Rupicapra rupicapra ) and the Alpine ibex ( Capra ibex ) play a reservoir role, whereas the red and roe deer and European mouflon are mere spillover hosts despite their abundance and sympatry with the aforementioned native caprines [ 38 ].…”

“…Domestic goats and sheep are well-known suitable hosts for S. scabiei , and cross-transmission with wild caprines has been demonstrated experimentally [ 25 ]. Transmission of S. scabiei at the wild–domestic interface has also been reported under natural conditions [ 2 , 22 , 25 , 38 ]. The presence or introduction of sympatric herds of domestic goats infected with S. scabiei has been proposed as the origin of the first epizootic outbreak reported in the Iberian Peninsula and affecting the Spanish ibex [ 2 ], the subsequent outbreak described in Cantabrian chamois [ 4 ], and also the most recent sarcoptic mange outbreak affecting the ibex population in the Tortosa mountains [ 40 ].…”

Comment on: “The treatment of sarcoptic mange in wildlife: a systematic review”

“…Even though that work was representing an outbreak in free-ranging wildlife, the numbers of affected individuals are far from those recorded during scabies outbreaks in European fauna, e.g. the Northern chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra; n = 1696 affected individuals, 16.6% of the chamois population [17,18]), or the Iberian ibex (Capra pyrenaica; c.7695 scabietic individuals, 80% of the ibex population in Sierra de Cazorla [19] and 3382 scabietic individuals, 23% of Sierra Nevada ibex population [20]).…”

Demography reveals populational expansion of a recently extinct Iberian ungulate

“…Considered a serious threat to wildlife at continental level (Rossi et al 2019), it is likely that this virus (most often transmitted from livestock) also contributed to the vertiginous decline of the Pyrenean ibex. Despite the fact that hunting and epizootics from sympatric livestock are deemed to have played a major role (along with habitat fragmentation) in drastically reducing its populations over the last two centuries, the relative contribution of multiple threatening factors remains largely unknown (Hidalgo and García-González 1995;García-González et al 1996).…”