Wolves contribute to disease control in a multi-host system

We combine model results with field data for a system of wolves (Canis lupus) that prey on wild boar (Sus scrofa), a wildlife reservoir of tuberculosis, to examine how predation may contribute to disease control in multi-host systems. Results show that predation can lead to a marked reduction in the...

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Autores principales: Tanner, E., White, A., Acevedo, P., Balseiro, A., Marcos, J., Gortázar, C.
Formato: Online Artículo Texto
Lenguaje:English
Publicado: Nature Publishing Group UK 2019
Materias:
Acceso en línea:https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6538665/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31138835
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-44148-9
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author Tanner, E.
White, A.
Acevedo, P.
Balseiro, A.
Marcos, J.
Gortázar, C.
author_facet Tanner, E.
White, A.
Acevedo, P.
Balseiro, A.
Marcos, J.
Gortázar, C.
author_sort Tanner, E.
collection PubMed
description We combine model results with field data for a system of wolves (Canis lupus) that prey on wild boar (Sus scrofa), a wildlife reservoir of tuberculosis, to examine how predation may contribute to disease control in multi-host systems. Results show that predation can lead to a marked reduction in the prevalence of infection without leading to a reduction in host population density since mortality due to predation can be compensated by a reduction in disease induced mortality. A key finding therefore is that a population that harbours a virulent infection can be regulated at a similar density by disease at high prevalence or by predation at low prevalence. Predators may therefore provide a key ecosystem service which should be recognised when considering human-carnivore conflicts and the conservation and re-establishment of carnivore populations.
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spelling pubmed-65386652019-06-06 Wolves contribute to disease control in a multi-host system Tanner, E. White, A. Acevedo, P. Balseiro, A. Marcos, J. Gortázar, C. Sci Rep Article We combine model results with field data for a system of wolves (Canis lupus) that prey on wild boar (Sus scrofa), a wildlife reservoir of tuberculosis, to examine how predation may contribute to disease control in multi-host systems. Results show that predation can lead to a marked reduction in the prevalence of infection without leading to a reduction in host population density since mortality due to predation can be compensated by a reduction in disease induced mortality. A key finding therefore is that a population that harbours a virulent infection can be regulated at a similar density by disease at high prevalence or by predation at low prevalence. Predators may therefore provide a key ecosystem service which should be recognised when considering human-carnivore conflicts and the conservation and re-establishment of carnivore populations. Nature Publishing Group UK 2019-05-28 /pmc/articles/PMC6538665/ /pubmed/31138835 http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-44148-9 Text en © The Author(s) 2019 Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons license, and indicate if changes were made. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons license and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/.
spellingShingle Article
Tanner, E.
White, A.
Acevedo, P.
Balseiro, A.
Marcos, J.
Gortázar, C.
Wolves contribute to disease control in a multi-host system
title Wolves contribute to disease control in a multi-host system
title_full Wolves contribute to disease control in a multi-host system
title_fullStr Wolves contribute to disease control in a multi-host system
title_full_unstemmed Wolves contribute to disease control in a multi-host system
title_short Wolves contribute to disease control in a multi-host system
title_sort wolves contribute to disease control in a multi-host system
topic Article
url https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6538665/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31138835
http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-44148-9
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