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Burger J, Gochfeld M, Zappalorti R, Bunnell J, Jeitner C, Schneider D, Ng K, DeVito E, Lorch JM. Prevalence of Ophidiomyces ophidiicola and epizootiology of snake fungal disease in free-ranging Northern Pine Snakes (Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus) in New Jersey. ENVIRONMENTAL MONITORING AND ASSESSMENT 2023; 195:662. [PMID: 37169998 DOI: 10.1007/s10661-023-11259-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2023] [Accepted: 04/18/2023] [Indexed: 05/13/2023]
Abstract
Snake fungal disease, caused by Ophidiomyces ophidiicola, is recognized as a potential concern for North American snakes. We tested skin swabs from Northern Pine Snakes (Pituophis melanoleucus melanoleucus) in the New Jersey pinelands for the presence of O. ophidiicola before emergence from hibernation. We used qPCR to test the collected swabs for the presence of O. ophidiicola, then determined pathogen prevalence as a function of sampling year, sampling location (skin lesion, healthy ventral skin, healthy head skin) sex, and age. There were no temporal trends in O. ophidiicola detection percentages on snakes, which varied from 58 to 83% in different years. Ophidiomyces ophidiicola detection on snakes was highest in swabs of skin lesions (71%) and lowest in head swabs (29%). Males had higher prevalence than females (82% versus 62%). The fungus was not detected in hatchling snakes (age 0) in the fall, but 75% of juveniles tested positive at the end of hibernation (age 1 year). We also screened hibernacula soil samples for the presence of O. ophidiicola. Where snakes hibernated, 69% of soil samples were positive for O. ophidiicola, and 85% of snakes lying on positive soil samples also tested positive for the pathogen. Although a high proportion of snakes (73%) tested positive for O. ophidiicola during our 4-year study, the snakes appeared healthy except for small skin lesions. We conclude that O. ophidiicola prevalence is high on hibernating Northern Pine Snakes and in the hibernacula soil, with a strong association between snakes and positive adjacent soil. This is the first demonstration that snakes likely become infected during hibernation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanna Burger
- Division of Life Sciences, Rutgers University, 604 Allison Road, Piscataway, NJ, 08854, USA.
- Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute (EOHSI), Rutgers University, 170 Frelinghuysen Rd, Piscataway, NJ, 08854, USA.
| | - Michael Gochfeld
- Rutgers Biomedical and Health Sciences, Piscataway, NJ, 08854, USA
- Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences Institute (EOHSI), Rutgers University, 170 Frelinghuysen Rd, Piscataway, NJ, 08854, USA
| | - Robert Zappalorti
- Herpetological Associates Inc, 405 Magnolia Rd, Pemberton, NJ, 08068, USA
| | - John Bunnell
- New Jersey Pinelands Commission, 15 Springfield Rd, New Lisbon, NJ, 08064, USA
| | - Christian Jeitner
- New Jersey Pinelands Commission, 15 Springfield Rd, New Lisbon, NJ, 08064, USA
- Pinelands Field Station, Rutgers University, 501 4 Mile Road, New Lisbon, NJ, 08064, USA
| | - David Schneider
- Herpetological Associates Inc, 405 Magnolia Rd, Pemberton, NJ, 08068, USA
| | - Kelly Ng
- Division of Life Sciences, Rutgers University, 604 Allison Road, Piscataway, NJ, 08854, USA
| | - Emile DeVito
- New Jersey Conservation Foundation, 170 LongView Road,, Far Hills, NJ, 07931, USA
| | - Jeffrey M Lorch
- U.S. Geological Survey - National Wildlife Health Center, 6006 Schroeder Rd, Madison, WI, 53711, USA
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Teffo TR, Katona K, Babocsay G, Sós E, Halpern B. Home Range of the Caspian Whipsnake Dolichophis caspius (Gmelin, 1789) in a Threatened Peri-Urban Population. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:ani13030447. [PMID: 36766335 PMCID: PMC9913663 DOI: 10.3390/ani13030447] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2022] [Revised: 01/22/2023] [Accepted: 01/23/2023] [Indexed: 01/31/2023] Open
Abstract
Semi-natural environments within cities can provide habitats for vulnerable reptile species. Better understanding of their habitat use and home range sizes is important for their conservation. We investigated the spatial ecology of Caspian whipsnakes (Dolicophis caspius) in a peri-urban habitat in Budapest, Hungary. We used radiotelemetry to track five adult snakes and analyzed their microhabitat preferences, home range sizes and daily movements. The Caspian whipsnakes intensively utilized areas covered with woody vegetation, with a high density of hibernacula. The tracked snakes used an area of 40.15 ha during the activity period from spring to autumn, but for the winter, they withdrew to a central area of 1.75 ha, abundant in hibernacula. During the activity period the individual home range sizes varied between 6.1 and 15.5 ha, estimated using the minimum convex polygon (MCP); however, for the entire datasets of the individuals, the adaptive kernel method gave the highest mean (13.8 ha), while the LoCoH-R yielded the smallest home ranges (5.19 ha). We found that the average daily displacement for the different individuals ranged between 12.6 and 36.6 m during their main activity season. In the study area, the whipsnakes currently have enough space for foraging, but the restricted spatial distribution of hibernacula, which is mainly available in the central dry rocky forest and partly in the shrubby areas, can limit the extent of the suitable habitat. Human activities and anthropogenic disturbances, especially around hibernacula, may exert pressure on this peri-urban snake population.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thabang Rainett Teffo
- Department of Wildlife Biology and Management, Institute for Wildlife Management and Nature Conservation, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Páter Károly u. 1., H-2100 Gödöllő, Hungary
- Correspondence: (T.R.T.); (K.K.)
| | - Krisztián Katona
- Department of Wildlife Biology and Management, Institute for Wildlife Management and Nature Conservation, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Páter Károly u. 1., H-2100 Gödöllő, Hungary
- Correspondence: (T.R.T.); (K.K.)
| | - Gergely Babocsay
- MME Birdlife Hungary, Költő utca 21., H-1121 Budapest, Hungary
- Mátra Museum of the Hungarian Natural History Museum, Kossuth Lajos utca 40., H-3200 Gyöngyös, Hungary
| | - Endre Sós
- Budapest Zoo and Botanical Garden, Állatkerti krt. 6-12., H-1146 Budapest, Hungary
| | - Bálint Halpern
- MME Birdlife Hungary, Költő utca 21., H-1121 Budapest, Hungary
- Department of Systematic Zoology and Ecology, Institute of Biology, Doctoral School of Biology, Eötvös Loránd University, Pázmány Péter sétány 1/C, H-1117 Budapest, Hungary
- ELKH-ELTE-MTM Integrative Ecology Research Group, Pázmány Péter sétány 1/C, H-1117 Budapest, Hungary
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Akresh ME, Meeker ED, King DI. Observations of Snakes and Game Birds in a Managed Pine Barren in Massachusetts. Northeast Nat (Steuben) 2022. [DOI: 10.1656/045.029.0102] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Michael E. Akresh
- Department of Environmental Studies, Antioch University New England, Keene, NH 03431
| | - Evan D. Meeker
- Department of Environmental Studies, Antioch University New England, Keene, NH 03431
| | - David I. King
- US Forest Service Northern Research Station, Amherst, MA 01003
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Nikolakis ZL, Orton RW, Crother BI. Fine‐scale population structure within an Eastern Nearctic snake complex (
Pituophis melanoleucus
). ZOOL SCR 2021. [DOI: 10.1111/zsc.12522] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Zachary L. Nikolakis
- Department of Biology Southeastern Louisiana University Hammond Louisina USA
- Department of Biology University of Texas at Arlington Arlington Texas USA
| | - Richard W. Orton
- Department of Biology University of Texas at Arlington Arlington Texas USA
| | - Brian I. Crother
- Department of Biology Southeastern Louisiana University Hammond Louisina USA
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Burger J, Zappalorti R, Gochfeld M, Devito E, Jeitner C. Trade-Offs and Vulnerability of Northern Pine Snakes (Pituophis m. melanoleucus): A Comparison of Nest-Site Selection in the Early 1980s and 2020. HERPETOLOGICA 2021. [DOI: 10.1655/herpetologica-d-21-0001.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
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Burger J, Zappalorti RT, Gochfeld M. Hatchling survival to breeding age in Northern Pine Snakes (Pituophis melanoleucus) in the New Jersey Pine Barrens: Human effects on recruitment from 1986 to 2017. PLoS One 2018; 13:e0195676. [PMID: 29758024 PMCID: PMC5951674 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0195676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2017] [Accepted: 03/27/2018] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
To conserve threatened/endangered species, we need to understand the factors contributing to reproductive success and recruitment to reproductive stage. Obtaining this information is difficult for snakes because they are secretive, are not easy to locate at the same stage each year, and are sometimes sparsely distributed. We determined nest fate, hatchling growth and survival to age 5 years, and recruitment to breeding age of Northern Pine Snakes (Pituophis melanoleucus) in New Jersey Pine Barrens from 1986 to 2017. Pine Snakes are ‘threatened’ in New Jersey and in other states, and are at risk because of increased human population, habitat loss, predation, and poaching. Age of first-breeding was 4-years, based on snout-vent length of gravid and laying females, and snout-vent length of females followed as hatchlings to 5-years. Mean clutch size (+ 1 SE) was 9.5 + 0.3 (N = 53). The annual percent of nests in which eggs hatched averaged 25% (N = 288 nests), and varied among 5-year periods (5% to 30%/year). Of lab-reared hatchlings released into natal nests (N = 90), 26% (2015) and 32% (2016) reached hibernacula excavated in 2016 and 2017. The sex ratio of hatchlings reaching hibernation sites (N = 181) between 1986 and 2015 was skewed toward females (74/106, 59% females), and varied among 5-year periods (47–75% females). Once hatchlings reached a hibernaculum, there was a sex-related difference in survival. For hatchlings reaching a monitored hibernaculum, survival to 3-years was 35% in females and 40% in males, and to 4-years was 25% in females and 33% in males. Using these data, only 10% of females reached 3 years (first possible breeding age), and 7% survived to 4-years. Methodological problems with determining survival rates during these early critical years are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joanna Burger
- Division of Life Sciences, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey, United States of America
| | - Robert T Zappalorti
- Herpetological Associates, Inc. Pemberton, New Jersey, United States of America
| | - Michael Gochfeld
- Division of Life Sciences, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey, United States of America
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