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Figueira MDP, Silva IDOE, Boere V. Olfactory Enrichment in Hoary Foxes ( Lycalopex vetulus LUND 1842): A Case Study. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:ani13091530. [PMID: 37174566 PMCID: PMC10177539 DOI: 10.3390/ani13091530] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2023] [Revised: 04/15/2023] [Accepted: 05/01/2023] [Indexed: 05/15/2023] Open
Abstract
We have tested a method of olfactory environmental enrichment in hoary foxes used in other wild canids in captivity. The individuals were exposed to four olfactory stimuli (meat, mouse urine, cheese, and egg) that were wrapped in cotton bags outside the enclosures at the zoo for five minutes. Behavioral observations were performed using the focal animal method, and all occurrences were recorded. The pre-exposure phase (Basal), exposure phase (Exp), and post-exposure phase and Basal phase (Pos) were analyzed for a period of five minutes. Behavioral responses were categorized as positive, negative, or other. Positive behavior tended to increase (p = 0.07) from the Basal phase to the Exp phase, but there was no statistical difference (p = 0.31) between the phases. Negative and other behavior did not differ statistically from the Basal phase to the Exp phase (N-, p = 0.32; Ot, p = 0.35) or Basal to the Pos phase (N-, p = 0.18; Ot, p = 0.92). The odors used seemed to elicit positive behavior weakly. Negative behavior was stable for the hoary foxes. The method failed to improve the hoary foxes' welfare. Because their natural diet is based on insects and fruits, it is suggested that the stimuli used in this study have no appetitive value for hoary foxes. The method used with the same olfactory stimuli that were successful in other canid species is unsuitable for hoary foxes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Milene de Paula Figueira
- Post-Graduate Program at Animal Biology, Universidade Federal de Viçosa, Viçosa 36570-900, MG, Brazil
| | - Ita de Oliveira E Silva
- Post-Graduate Program at Health, Environment and Biodiversity, Universidade Federal do Sul da Bahia, Itabuna 45653-970, BA, Brazil
| | - Vanner Boere
- Post-Graduate Program at Environmental Sciences and Technology, Universidade Federal do Sul da Bahia, Itabuna 45653-970, BA, Brazil
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Brandão EMV, Xavier SCC, Rocha FL, Lima CFM, Candeias ÍZ, Lemos FG, Azevedo FC, Jansen AM, Roque ALR. Wild and Domestic Canids and Their Interactions in the Transmission Cycles of Trypanosoma Cruzi and Leishmania spp. in an Area of the Brazilian Cerrado. Pathogens 2020; 9:pathogens9100818. [PMID: 33036238 PMCID: PMC7600672 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens9100818] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2020] [Revised: 10/01/2020] [Accepted: 10/03/2020] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Trypanosoma cruzi and Leishmania spp. are parasites that infect multiple hosts including canids, considered bioaccumulators of parasites. Deforestation in the Cerrado biome has resulted in the exposure of wild canids to anthropized areas, where they may establish ecological and epidemiological relationships with domestic dogs. We evaluated the infection by trypanosomatids in canids from a Cerrado agroecosystem between 2013 and 2017. Samples of wild canids (blood, bone marrow and skin) and dogs (blood) were collected for parasitological, serological and molecular diagnosis. A total of 414 samples from wild (n = 131) and domestic (n = 283) canids were collected, including recaptures. We obtained five positive hemocultures from Lycalopex vetulus (n = 2), Cerdocyon thous (n = 1) and dogs (n = 2), all characterized as T. cruzi TcIII/V (18S rDNA) and TcIII/V/VI (gGAPDH); one positive skin fragment for Leishmania sp. (C. thous), one positive skin culture (Chrysocyon brachyurus) and one positive fresh blood examination from a dog. Infection by T. cruzi and Leishmania spp. was serologically confirmed in 18% and 4% of the canids, respectively. Active transmission was attested by seroconversion events and occurred despite the low rate of positive parasitological assays. Wild and domestic canids infected by both parasites were detected sharing the same areas, pointing to a possible spillover of parasites among them.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elida M. V. Brandão
- Laboratório de Biologia de Tripanosomatídeos, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ 21040-900, Brazil; (E.M.V.B.); (S.C.C.X.); (A.M.J.)
| | - Samanta C. C. Xavier
- Laboratório de Biologia de Tripanosomatídeos, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ 21040-900, Brazil; (E.M.V.B.); (S.C.C.X.); (A.M.J.)
| | - Fabiana L. Rocha
- Centro de Ciências Aplicadas e Educação, Campus IV Litoral Norte, Universidade Federal da Paraíba, Rio Tinto, PB 58297-000, Brazil;
- Programa de Conservação Mamíferos do Cerrado, Catalão, GO 75704-020, Brazil; (C.F.M.L.); (Í.Z.C.); (F.G.L.); (F.C.A.)
| | - Caio F. M. Lima
- Programa de Conservação Mamíferos do Cerrado, Catalão, GO 75704-020, Brazil; (C.F.M.L.); (Í.Z.C.); (F.G.L.); (F.C.A.)
- Fundação Parque Zoológico de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP 04301-905, Brazil
| | - Ísis Z. Candeias
- Programa de Conservação Mamíferos do Cerrado, Catalão, GO 75704-020, Brazil; (C.F.M.L.); (Í.Z.C.); (F.G.L.); (F.C.A.)
- Departamento de Reprodução Animal, Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo, SP 05508-270, Brazil
| | - Frederico G. Lemos
- Programa de Conservação Mamíferos do Cerrado, Catalão, GO 75704-020, Brazil; (C.F.M.L.); (Í.Z.C.); (F.G.L.); (F.C.A.)
- Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Catalão, Catalão, GO 75704-020, Brazil
| | - Fernanda C. Azevedo
- Programa de Conservação Mamíferos do Cerrado, Catalão, GO 75704-020, Brazil; (C.F.M.L.); (Í.Z.C.); (F.G.L.); (F.C.A.)
- Departamento de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal de Catalão, Catalão, GO 75704-020, Brazil
| | - Ana M. Jansen
- Laboratório de Biologia de Tripanosomatídeos, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ 21040-900, Brazil; (E.M.V.B.); (S.C.C.X.); (A.M.J.)
| | - André L. R. Roque
- Laboratório de Biologia de Tripanosomatídeos, Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, RJ 21040-900, Brazil; (E.M.V.B.); (S.C.C.X.); (A.M.J.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +55-21-2562-1416
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Ramos VN, Lemos FG, Azevedo FC, Arrais RC, Lima CFM, Candeias IZ, Martins MM, Sandrin ACLG, Siqueira SM, Szabó MPJ. Wild carnivores, domestic dogs and ticks: shared parasitism in the Brazilian Cerrado. Parasitology 2020; 147:689-98. [PMID: 32102697 DOI: 10.1017/S0031182020000335] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
The increase of contact between natural and rural areas is prominent in Brazil, due to agricultural activities and concern with the environmental conservation. In this context, domestic animals, wild fauna and humans are exposed to mutual exchange of parasites, microorganisms and diseases. We studied tick parasitism of wild carnivores and domestic dogs, and the environmental of questing ticks, in extensive cattle ranch areas intermingled with natural vegetation, and in a natural reserve, both in a region of Cerrado biome, Midwestern Brazil. From 2008 to 2015, we inspected 119 wild carnivores from nine species, and collected six tick species (Amblyomma sculptum, Amblyomma ovale, Amblyomma dubitatum, Amblyomma tigrinum, Dermacentor nitens and Rhipicephalus microplus). The most numerous and infested hosts were Cerdocyon thous, Lycalopex vetulus, Chrysocyon brachyurus, Puma concolor and Conepatus amazonicus. From 139 domestic dogs, we collected A. sculptum, Rhipicephalus sanguineus and R. microplus. From vegetation, samplings resulted in A. sculptum, A. dubitatum, A. ovale, Amblyomma rotundatum and R. microplus, with dominance of A. sculptum. Domestics and wild animals presented high overlapping of infestations by A. sculptum, a generalist and anthropophilic tick species. This tick is the most important vector of the Brazilian spotted fever, a lethal human disease. This fact elicits attention and requires efforts to monitor the presence of pathogens vectored by ticks circulating in this type of agroecosystem, including in other regions of the Brazil, because the most of the natural vegetation remaining have been increasingly immersed in pastures and agricultural matrix.
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Gondim LFP, Soares RM, Osaki SC, Snak A, Grillo LR, Fernandes NLM, de Carvalho AL. Hammondia sp. oocysts shed by a Brazilian fox ( Lycalopex vetulus) differ from Hammondia heydorni and Hammondia triffittae. Parasitol Res 2018; 117:2299-2304. [PMID: 29781058 DOI: 10.1007/s00436-018-5920-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/06/2018] [Accepted: 05/09/2018] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
A Brazilian fox (Lycalopex vetulus) was rescued from a highway, and 16 days after maintained in captivity, the fox shed oocysts with sizes compatible with Hammondia sp. and Neospora caninum. DNA extracted from oocysts were initially tested in two PCRs targeting the internal transcribed spacer 1 (ITS-1) of the rDNA of Hammondia heydorni and the Nc-5 gene of N. caninum. A 270-bp product was visualized in the PCR for H. heydorni. No amplification was observed for N. caninum PCR. Since ITS-1-based PCR is not sufficient to differentiate Hammondia species derived from canids, oocyst DNA was examined using multilocus sequence analysis of five genetic fragments [intron 1 of the alpha tubulin gene (intron 1), internal transcribed spaces 1 and 2 (ITS-1 and ITS-2) of the rDNA, 28S rRNA gene (D2/D3 domain), and heat shock protein 70 (Hsp70)]. The Hammondia sp. oocyst from the Brazilian fox, referred here as H-FOXBR isolate, is closely related to H. heydorni and Hammondia triffittae, but differs from these parasites in three genetic markers (alpha tubulin gene, ITS-2, and 28S rRNA). As reported by other research groups, Hammondia spp. excreted by canids are genetically diverse and may encompass additional species besides H. heydorni and H. triffittae. In this study, we confirmed that H-FOXBR has significant genetic differences in comparison to H. heydorni and H. triffittae and may represent a separate species. Further studies are needed to identify the life cycle of this parasite and to characterize the parasite stages in the intermediate and definitive hosts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luís F P Gondim
- Departamento de Anatomia, Patologia e Clínicas, Universidade Federal da Bahia, Escola de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Avenida Adhemar de Barros, 500, Ondina, Salvador, Bahia, 40170-110, Brazil.
| | - Rodrigo M Soares
- Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Saúde Animal (VPS), Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia da Universidade de São Paulo, Av. Prof. Dr. Orlando Marques de Paiva, 87 - Cidade Universitária, São Paulo, SP, 05508 270, Brazil
| | - Silvia C Osaki
- Departamento de Ciências Veterinárias, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Setor Palotina, R. Pioneiros, 2153, Jardim Dallas, Palotina, PR, 85950-000, Brazil
| | - Alessandra Snak
- Departamento de Medicina Veterinária Preventiva e Tecnologia, Centro de Ciências Agroveterinárias, Universidade do Estado de Santa Catarina, Lages, SC, Brazil
| | - Laura R Grillo
- Departamento de Ciências Veterinárias, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Setor Palotina, R. Pioneiros, 2153, Jardim Dallas, Palotina, PR, 85950-000, Brazil
| | - Nelson L M Fernandes
- Departamento de Ciências Veterinárias, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Setor Palotina, R. Pioneiros, 2153, Jardim Dallas, Palotina, PR, 85950-000, Brazil
| | - Anderson L de Carvalho
- Departamento de Ciências Veterinárias, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Setor Palotina, R. Pioneiros, 2153, Jardim Dallas, Palotina, PR, 85950-000, Brazil
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