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Sanglas A, Palomares F. Response of a mesocarnivore community to a new food resource: recognition, exploitation, and interspecific competition. EUR J WILDLIFE RES 2022. [DOI: 10.1007/s10344-022-01597-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
AbstractMammalian carnivores with generalist feeding behaviour should trace and exploit new and predictable food resources quicker and more easily than more specialised species. On the other hand, if the new food resource is spatially and temporally predictable, interference or exploitation competition should arise among members of the carnivore guild, with the expectation that smaller species will not use the food resource or will change their foraging behaviour to avoid conflict with larger species. Here, we studied the response to a new food resource of a mammalian mesocarnivore community in south-western Iberian Peninsula. We installed artificial feeding points supplied with a novel food source and tracked them by camera trapping to investigate whether (1) the new artificial food resource was visited, recognised and exploited by the mesocarnivore guild species; (2) how frequently they used the food; and (3) in case of co-occurrence, if dominant species excluded or reduced the feeding options of subordinates. All target species except the badger recognised and exploited the novel food. More generalist species trended to visit feeding points more frequently and spent more time feeding than less generalist species, even though significant differences were not achieved in all cases. When co-occurring at the same feeding point, the arrival of larger species reduced either the visitation rates, feeding probability or time spent feeding of smaller species. Moreover, some smaller species showed a shift in their normal activity pattern at the feeding points when a larger competitor started to use the food source. Overall, we conclude that active avoidance combined with temporal segregation may help reduce agonistic interactions among competitors for shared resources.
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2
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Descalzo E, Jiménez J, Delibes‐Mateos M, Díaz‐Ruiz F, Ferreras P. Assessment of methods for detecting an opportunistic and expanding mesocarnivore in southwestern Europe. J Zool (1987) 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12912] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- E. Descalzo
- Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC) CSIC‐UCLM‐JCCM Ciudad Real Spain
| | - J. Jiménez
- Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC) CSIC‐UCLM‐JCCM Ciudad Real Spain
| | | | - F. Díaz‐Ruiz
- Grupo de Biogeografía Diversidad y Conservación Departamento de Biología Animal Facultad de Ciencias Universidad de Málaga Málaga Spain
- Instituto IBYDA. Centro de Experimentación Grice‐Hutchinson Málaga Spain
| | - P. Ferreras
- Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC) CSIC‐UCLM‐JCCM Ciudad Real Spain
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Becker AAMJ, Hill KC, Butaye P. Unraveling the Gut Microbiome of the Invasive Small Indian Mongoose ( Urva auropunctata) in the Caribbean. Microorganisms 2021; 9:microorganisms9030465. [PMID: 33668312 PMCID: PMC7996244 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms9030465] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2020] [Revised: 02/13/2021] [Accepted: 02/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Small Indian mongooses (Urva auropunctata) are among the most pervasive predators to disrupt the native ecology on Caribbean islands and are strongly entrenched in their areas of introduction. Few studies, however, have considered the microbial ecology of such biological invasions. In this study, we investigated the gut microbiota of invasive small Indian mongooses in terms of taxonomic diversity and functional potential. To this end, we collected fecal samples from 60 free-roaming mongooses trapped in different vegetation zones on the island Saint Kitts. The core gut microbiome, assessed by 16S rRNA amplicon gene sequencing on the Ion S5TM XL platform, reflects a carnivore-like signature with a dominant abundance of Firmicutes (54.96%), followed by Proteobacteria (13.98%) and Fusobacteria (12.39%), and a relatively minor contribution of Actinobacteria (10.4%) and Bacteroidetes (6.40%). Mongooses trapped at coastal sites exhibited a higher relative abundance of Fusobacterium spp. whereas those trapped in scrubland areas were enriched in Bacteroidetes, but there was no site-specific difference in predicted metabolic properties. Between males and females, beta-diversity was not significantly different and no sex-specific strategies for energy production were observed. However, the relative abundance of Gammaproteobacteria, and more specifically, Enterobacteriaceae, was significantly higher in males. This first description of the microbial profile of small Indian mongooses provides new insights into their bioecology and can serve as a springboard to further elucidating this invasive predator’s impact throughout the Caribbean.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne A. M. J. Becker
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine, Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis; (K.H.); (P.B.)
- One Health Center for Zoonoses and Tropical Veterinary Medicine, Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine, Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Correspondence:
| | - KC Hill
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine, Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis; (K.H.); (P.B.)
| | - Patrick Butaye
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine, Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis; (K.H.); (P.B.)
- One Health Center for Zoonoses and Tropical Veterinary Medicine, Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine, Basseterre, Saint Kitts and Nevis
- Department of Pathology, Bacteriology, and Poultry Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ghent University, 9820 Merelbeke, Belgium
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4
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Azevedo A, Bailey L, Bandeira V, Fonseca C, Wauters J, Jewgenow K. Decreasing glucocorticoid levels towards the expansion front suggest ongoing expansion in a terrestrial mammal. CONSERVATION PHYSIOLOGY 2021; 9:coab050. [PMID: 34249365 PMCID: PMC8253928 DOI: 10.1093/conphys/coab050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2021] [Revised: 06/02/2021] [Accepted: 06/11/2021] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
Understanding the causes of range expansions in abundant species can help predict future species distributions. During range expansions, animals are exposed to novel environments and are required to cope with new and unpredictable stressors. Glucocorticoids (GCs) are mediators of the hormonal and behavioural mechanisms allowing animals to cope with unpredictable changes in the environment and are therefore expected to differ between populations at expansion edge and the historic range. However, to date, very few studies have evaluated the relationship between GCs and range expansion. The Egyptian mongoose has been rapidly expanding its range in Portugal over the past 30 years. In this study, we applied an information theoretic approach to determine the most important spatial and environmental predictors of hair GCs (hGCs) in the population, after controlling for normal patterns of hGC variation in the species. We observed a decrease in hGC as distance from the historic range increased (i.e. closer to the expansion front). This distance term was present in all of the top models and had a 95% confidence interval (95% CI) that did not overlap with zero, strongly supporting its influence on hGC. We estimated a 0.031 pg/mg (95% CI: -0.057, -0.004) decrease in hGCs for each kilometre distance to the Tagus River, which was once the limit of the species' distribution. Our results indicate that the species' expansion is unlikely to be limited by mechanisms related to or mediated by the physiological stress response. The decrease in hGC levels towards the expansion edge coupled with limited evidence of a negative effect of human population density suggests that the species' northward expansion in Portugal could continue.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandre Azevedo
- Department of Reproduction Biology, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany
- Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar - University of Porto, R. Jorge de Viterbo Ferreira 228, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal
- Corresponding author: Department of Reproduction Biology, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Alfred-Kowalke-Straße 17, 10315 Berlin, Germany.
| | - Liam Bailey
- Department of Evolutionary Genetics, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany
| | - Victor Bandeira
- Department of Biology and CESAM, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
| | - Carlos Fonseca
- Department of Biology and CESAM, University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal
- ForestWISE - Collaborative Laboratory for Integrated Forest and Fire Management, Quinta de Prados, Campus da UTAD 5001-801 Vila Real, Portugal
| | - Jella Wauters
- Department of Reproduction Biology, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany
| | - Katarina Jewgenow
- Department of Reproduction Biology, Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Berlin, Germany
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Bandeira V, Virgós E, Azevedo A, Cunha M, Fonseca C. Association between reproduction and immunity in the Egyptian mongoose
Herpestes ichneumon
is sex‐biased and unaffected by body condition. J Zool (1987) 2020. [DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12842] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- V. Bandeira
- Department of Biology & CESAM University of Aveiro Aveiro Portugal
| | - E. Virgós
- Departamento de Biología Geología Física y Química Inorgánica Área Biodiversidad y Conservación ESCET Universidad Rey Juan Carlos Móstoles Spain
| | - A. Azevedo
- Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research Berlin Germany
- Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar Porto Portugal
| | - M.V. Cunha
- cE3c‐ Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes Faculdade de Ciências Universidade de Lisboa Lisboa Portugal
- BioISI‐ Biosystems & Integrative Sciences Institute Faculdade de Ciências Universidade de Lisboa Lisboa Portugal
| | - C. Fonseca
- Department of Biology & CESAM University of Aveiro Aveiro Portugal
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Methodological improvements for detecting and identifying scats of an expanding mesocarnivore in south-western Europe. Mamm Biol 2020. [DOI: 10.1007/s42991-020-00062-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
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Pereira AC, Bandeira V, Fonseca C, Cunha MV. Crosstalk Between Culturomics and Microbial Profiling of Egyptian Mongoose ( Herpestes ichneumon) Gut Microbiome. Microorganisms 2020; 8:E808. [PMID: 32471180 PMCID: PMC7355707 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms8060808] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2020] [Revised: 05/10/2020] [Accepted: 05/26/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Recently, we unveiled taxonomical and functional differences in Egyptian mongoose (Herpestes ichneumon) gut microbiota across sex and age classes by microbial profiling. In this study, we generate, through culturomics, extended baseline information on the culturable bacterial and fungal microbiome of the species using the same specimens as models. Firstly, this strategy enabled us to explore cultivable microbial community differences across sexes and to ascertain the influence exerted by biological and environmental contexts of each host in its microbiota signature. Secondly, it permitted us to compare the culturomics and microbial profiling approaches and their ability to provide information on mongoose gut microbiota. In agreement with microbial profiling, culturomics showed that the core gut cultivable microbiota of the mongoose is dominated by Firmicutes and, as previously found, is able to distinguish sex- and age class-specific genera. Additional information could be obtained by culturomics, with six new genera unveiled. Richness indices and the Shannon index were concordant between culture-dependent and culture-independent approaches, highlighting significantly higher values when using microbial profiling. However, the Simpson index underlined higher values for the culturomics-generated data. These contrasting results were due to a differential influence of dominant and rare taxa on those indices. Beta diversity analyses of culturable microbiota showed similarities between adults and juveniles, but not in the data series originated from microbial profiling. Additionally, whereas the microbial profiling indicated that there were several bioenvironmental features related to the bacterial gut microbiota of the Egyptian mongoose, a clear association between microbiota and bioenvironmental features could not be established through culturomics. The discrepancies found between the data generated by the two methodologies and the underlying inferences, both in terms of β-diversity and role of bioenvironmental features, confirm that culture-independent, sequence-based methods have a higher ability to assess, at a fine scale, the influence of abiotic and biotic factors on the microbial community composition of mongoose' gut. However, when used in a complementary perspective, this knowledge can be expanded by culturomics.
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Affiliation(s)
- André C. Pereira
- National Institute for Agrarian and Veterinary Research (INIAV, IP), Wildlife, Hunting and Biodiversity R&D Unit, 2780-157 Oeiras, Portugal;
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes (cE3c), Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
- Biosystems & Integrative Sciences Institute (BioISI), Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Victor Bandeira
- Departamento de Biologia & CESAM, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal; (V.B.); (C.F.)
| | - Carlos Fonseca
- Departamento de Biologia & CESAM, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal; (V.B.); (C.F.)
| | - Mónica V. Cunha
- National Institute for Agrarian and Veterinary Research (INIAV, IP), Wildlife, Hunting and Biodiversity R&D Unit, 2780-157 Oeiras, Portugal;
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes (cE3c), Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
- Biosystems & Integrative Sciences Institute (BioISI), Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
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8
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The Gut Microbiota of the Egyptian Mongoose as an Early Warning Indicator of Ecosystem Health in Portugal. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH AND PUBLIC HEALTH 2020; 17:ijerph17093104. [PMID: 32365625 PMCID: PMC7246908 DOI: 10.3390/ijerph17093104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2020] [Revised: 04/20/2020] [Accepted: 04/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
The Egyptian mongoose is a carnivore mammal species that in the last decades experienced a tremendous expansion in Iberia, particularly in Portugal, mainly due to its remarkable ecological plasticity in response to land-use changes. However, this species may have a disruptive role on native communities in areas where it has recently arrived due to predation and the potential introduction of novel pathogens. We report reference information on the cultivable gut microbial landscape of widely distributed Egyptian mongoose populations (Herpestes ichneumon, n = 53) and related antimicrobial tolerance across environmental gradients. The panel of isolated species is consistent with the typical protein-based diet of a carnivore: Firmicutes predominate (89% of individuals), while Clostridiales, Enterobacteriales, and Lactobacillales are the major classes. Forty-one individuals (77.4%) harbour Clostridium spp. A spatial influence on mongooses’ microbiota is confirmed by nonmetric multidimensional scaling analysis, with a significant contribution of municipality to their microbiota composition. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing of mongoose commensal bacteria to 28 compounds evidences xenobiotic tolerance of Escherichia coli (E. coli), enterococci, Salmonella Spartel and Mbandaka serotypes and Pseudomonas bacteria, among others. The common isolation of antimicrobial tolerant microbiota from the mongoose’s gut suggests this species is exposed to anthropogenic influence and is affected by forestry and agricultural-related practices, reflecting its easy adaptation to ecological gradients across agroecosystems. We thus propose regular microbial and phenotypic resistance profiling of widely distributed mongooses as a sentinel tool for xenobiotics’ lifecycle and ecosystem health in Portugal.
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9
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Pereira AC, Bandeira V, Fonseca C, Cunha MV. Egyptian Mongoose ( Herpestes ichneumon) Gut Microbiota: Taxonomical and Functional Differences across Sex and Age Classes. Microorganisms 2020; 8:microorganisms8030392. [PMID: 32168965 PMCID: PMC7143146 DOI: 10.3390/microorganisms8030392] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2020] [Revised: 03/06/2020] [Accepted: 03/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The Egyptian mongoose (Herpestes ichneumon) is a medium-size carnivore that, in Europe, is restricted to Iberia. The bio-ecology of this species remains to be elucidated in several dimensions, including gut microbiota that is nowadays recognized as a fundamental component of mammals. In this work, we investigated the gut microbiota of this herpestid by single-molecule real-time sequencing of twenty paired male (n = 10) and female (n = 10) intestinal samples. This culture-independent approach enabled microbial profiling based on 16S rDNA and investigation of taxonomical and functional features. The core gut microbiome of the adult subpopulation was dominated by Firmicutes, Fusobacteria, Actinobacteria, and Proteobacteria. Eight genera were uniquely found in adults and five in non-adults. When comparing gut bacterial communities across sex, four genera were exclusive of females and six uniquely found in males. Despite these compositional distinctions, alpha- and beta-diversity analyses showed no statistically significant differences across sex or between adult and non-adult specimens. However, when function was inferred, males presented a significantly higher abundance of amino acid and citrate cycle metabolic pathways, compared to the significant overrepresentation in females of galactose metabolic pathways. Additionally, adults exhibited a significantly higher abundance of cationic antimicrobial peptide resistance pathways, while non-adults bared a significant overrepresentation of two-component systems associated with antibiotic synthesis, flagellin and biofilm production, and chemotaxis control. This study adds new insights into the mongoose bio-ecology palette, highlighting taxonomical and functional microbiome dissimilarities across sex and age classes, possibly related to primary production resources and life-history traits that impact on behavior and diet.
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Affiliation(s)
- André C. Pereira
- INIAV, IP- National Institute for Agrarian and Veterinary Research, 2780-157 Oeiras, Portugal;
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes (cE3c), Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
- Biosystems & Integrative Sciences Institute (BioISI), Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Victor Bandeira
- Departamento de Biologia & CESAM, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal; (V.B.)
| | - Carlos Fonseca
- Departamento de Biologia & CESAM, Universidade de Aveiro, 3810-193 Aveiro, Portugal; (V.B.)
| | - Mónica V. Cunha
- INIAV, IP- National Institute for Agrarian and Veterinary Research, 2780-157 Oeiras, Portugal;
- Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes (cE3c), Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
- Biosystems & Integrative Sciences Institute (BioISI), Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +351-214-403-500
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10
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Bandeira V, Virgós E, Azevedo A, Carvalho J, Cunha MV, Fonseca C. Sex and season explain spleen weight variation in the Egyptian mongoose. Curr Zool 2018; 65:11-20. [PMID: 30697234 PMCID: PMC6347055 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoy031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2018] [Accepted: 04/06/2018] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
The Egyptian mongoose (Herpestes ichneumon Linnaeus, 1758) is a medium-sized carnivore that experienced remarkable geographic expansion over the last 3 decades in the Iberian Peninsula. In this study, we investigated the association of species-related and abiotic factors with spleen weight (as a proxy for immunocompetence) in the species. We assessed the relationship of body condition, sex, age, season, and environmental conditions with spleen weight established for 508 hunted specimens. Our results indicate that the effects of sex and season outweigh those of all other variables, including body condition. Spleen weight is higher in males than in females, and heavier spleens are more likely to be found in spring, coinciding with the highest period of investment in reproduction due to mating, gestation, birth, and lactation. Coupled with the absence of an effect of body condition, our findings suggest that spleen weight variation in this species is mostly influenced by life-history traits linked to reproduction, rather than overall energy availability, winter immunoenhancement, or energy partitioning effects, and prompt further research focusing on this topic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victor Bandeira
- Department of Biology & Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar (CESAM), University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, Aveiro, Portugal
| | - Emilio Virgós
- Departamento de Biología, Geología, Física y Química Inorgánica, Área Biodiversidad y Conservación, Escuela Superior de Ciencias Experimentales y Tecnología (ESCET), Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, c/Tulipán, s/n, Móstoles, Madrid, Spain
| | - Alexandre Azevedo
- Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research, Alfred-Kowalke-Straße 17, Berlin, Germany.,Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar, R. Jorge de Viterbo Ferreira 228, Porto, Portugal
| | - João Carvalho
- Department of Biology & Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar (CESAM), University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, Aveiro, Portugal.,Wildlife Ecology & Health group (WE&H) and Servei d'Ecopatologia de Fauna Salvatge (SEFaS), Departament de Medicina i Cirurgia Animals, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Mónica V Cunha
- Instituto Nacional de Investigação Agrária e Veterinária (INIAV), IP-National Institute for Agrarian and Veterinary Research, Rua dos Lagidos, Lugar da Madalena, Vairão, Portugal.,cE3c-Centre for Ecology, Evolution and Environmental Changes, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal.,BioISI-Biosystems & Integrative Sciences Institute, Faculdade de Ciências, Universidade de Lisboa, Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Carlos Fonseca
- Department of Biology & Centro de Estudos do Ambiente e do Mar (CESAM), University of Aveiro, Campus Universitário de Santiago, Aveiro, Portugal
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