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Tiffin HS, Brown JD, Ternent M, Snavely B, Carrollo E, Kibe E, Buderman FE, Mullinax JM, Machtinger ET. Resolution of Clinical Signs of Sarcoptic Mange in American Black Bears (Ursus americanus), in Ivermectin-Treated and Nontreated Individuals. J Wildl Dis 2024; 60:434-447. [PMID: 38305090 DOI: 10.7589/jwd-d-23-00134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/06/2023] [Accepted: 10/31/2023] [Indexed: 02/03/2024]
Abstract
The parasitic mite Sarcoptes scabiei causes mange in nearly 150 species of mammals by burrowing under the skin, triggering hypersensitivity responses that can alter animals' behavior and result in extreme weight loss, secondary infections, and even death. Since the 1990s, sarcoptic mange has increased in incidence and geographic distribution in Pennsylvania black bear (Ursus americanus) populations, including expansion into other states. Recovery from mange in free-ranging wildlife has rarely been evaluated. Following the Pennsylvania Game Commission's standard operating procedures at the time of the study, treatment consisted of one subcutaneous injection of ivermectin. To evaluate black bear survival and recovery from mange, from 2018 to 2020 we fitted 61 bears, including 43 with mange, with GPS collars to track their movements and recovery. Bears were collared in triplicates according to sex and habitat, consisting of one bear without mange (healthy control), one scabietic bear treated with ivermectin when collared, and one untreated scabietic bear. Bears were reevaluated for signs of mange during annual den visits, if recaptured during the study period, and after mortality events. Disease status and recovery from mange was determined based on outward gross appearance and presence of S. scabiei mites from skin scrapes. Of the 36 scabietic bears with known recovery status, 81% fully recovered regardless of treatment, with 88% recovered with treatment and 74% recovered without treatment. All bears with no, low, or moderate mite burdens (<16 mites on skin scrapes) fully recovered from mange (n=20), and nearly half of bears with severe mite burden (≥16 mites) fully recovered (n=5, 42%). However, nonrecovered status did not indicate mortality, and mange-related mortality was infrequent. Most bears were able to recover from mange irrespective of treatment, potentially indicating a need for reevaluation of the mange wildlife management paradigm.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah S Tiffin
- Department of Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, 4 Chemical Ecology Laboratory, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA
| | - Justin D Brown
- Department of Veterinary & Biomedical Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, 108D AVBS Building, Shortlidge Rd., University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA
| | - Mark Ternent
- Pennsylvania Game Commission, 2001 Elmerton Ave., Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17110, USA
| | - Brandon Snavely
- Pennsylvania Game Commission, 2001 Elmerton Ave., Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17110, USA
| | - Emily Carrollo
- Pennsylvania Game Commission, 2001 Elmerton Ave., Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17110, USA
| | - Ethan Kibe
- Pennsylvania Game Commission, 2001 Elmerton Ave., Harrisburg, Pennsylvania 17110, USA
| | - Frances E Buderman
- Department of Ecosystem Science & Management, Pennsylvania State University, 401 Forest Resources Building, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA
| | - Jennifer M Mullinax
- Department of Environmental Science & Technology, University of Maryland, 1433 Animal Science Building, 8127 Regents Dr., College Park, Maryland 20742, USA
| | - Erika T Machtinger
- Department of Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, 4 Chemical Ecology Laboratory, University Park, Pennsylvania 16802, USA
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Gantchoff MG, Conlee L, Boudreau MR, Iglay RB, Anderson C, Belant JL. Spatially-explicit population modeling to predict large carnivore recovery and expansion. Ecol Modell 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2022.110033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Gantchoff MG, Conlee L, Belant J. The effectiveness of opportunistic public reports versus professional data to estimate large carnivore distribution. Ecosphere 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/ecs2.3938] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Mariela G. Gantchoff
- Global Wildlife Conservation Center State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry Syracuse New York USA
| | - Laura Conlee
- Missouri Department of Conservation Columbia Missouri USA
| | - Jerrold Belant
- Global Wildlife Conservation Center State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry Syracuse New York USA
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Frans VF, Augé AA, Fyfe J, Zhang Y, McNally N, Edelhoff H, Balkenhol N, Engler JO. Integrated SDM database: Enhancing the relevance and utility of species distribution models in conservation management. Methods Ecol Evol 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/2041-210x.13736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Veronica F. Frans
- Center for Systems Integration and Sustainability Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Michigan State University East Lansing MI USA
- Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior Program Michigan State University East Lansing MI USA
- Wildlife Sciences University of Göttingen Göttingen Germany
| | | | - Jim Fyfe
- Department of Conservation Ōtepoti/Dunedin Office Dunedin New Zealand
| | - Yuqian Zhang
- Center for Systems Integration and Sustainability Department of Fisheries and Wildlife Michigan State University East Lansing MI USA
| | | | - Hendrik Edelhoff
- Wildlife Sciences University of Göttingen Göttingen Germany
- Bavarian State Institute of Forestry Freising Germany
| | - Niko Balkenhol
- Wildlife Sciences University of Göttingen Göttingen Germany
| | - Jan O. Engler
- Terrestrial Ecology Unit Ghent University Ghent Belgium
- Chair of Computational Landscape Ecology Technische Universität Dresden Dresden Germany
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Gantchoff M, Conlee L, Belant J. Conservation implications of sex‐specific landscape suitability for a large generalist carnivore. DIVERS DISTRIB 2019. [DOI: 10.1111/ddi.12954] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Mariela Gantchoff
- Camp Fire Program in Wildlife Conservation, College of Environmental Science and Forestry State University of New York Syracuse New York USA
| | - Laura Conlee
- Missouri Department of Conservation Columbia Missouri USA
| | - Jerrold Belant
- Camp Fire Program in Wildlife Conservation, College of Environmental Science and Forestry State University of New York Syracuse New York USA
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