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Beyond the disease: is Toxoplasma gondii infection causing population declines in the eastern quoll (Dasyurus viverrinus)?
Citation
Fancourt, BA and Nicol, SC and Hawkins, CE and Jones, ME and Johnson, CN, Beyond the disease: is Toxoplasma gondii infection causing population declines in the eastern quoll (Dasyurus viverrinus)?, International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife, 3, (2) pp. 102-112. ISSN 2213-2244 (2014) [Refereed Article]
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Copyright Statement
Copyright 2014 The Authors-This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).
DOI: doi:10.1016/j.ijppaw.2014.05.001
Abstract
Disease is often considered a key threat to species of conservation significance. For some, it has resulted
in localised extinctions and declines in range and abundance. However, for some species, the assertion
that a disease poses a significant threat of extinction is based solely on correlative or anecdotal evidence,
often inferred from individual clinical case reports. While a species’ susceptibility to a disease may be
demonstrated in a number of individuals, investigations rarely extend to measuring the impact of disease
at the population level and its contribution, if any, to population declines. The eastern quoll (Dasyurus
viverrinus) is a medium-sized Australian marsupial carnivore that is undergoing severe and rapid decline
in Tasmania, its last refuge. Reasons for the decline are currently not understood. Feral cats (Felis catus)
may be undergoing competitive release following the ongoing decline of the Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus
harrisii), with cats suppressing eastern quolls through increased predation, competition, exclusion or
exposure to diseases such as toxoplasmosis. To investigate the effects of Toxoplasma gondii infection, eastern
quoll populations at four sites were regularly screened for the seroprevalence of T. gondii-specific IgG
antibodies. Seroprevalence was approximately five times higher at sites with declining quoll populations,
and there was a negative association between seroprevalence and quoll abundance. However, T. gondii
infection did not reduce quoll survival or reproduction. Despite a high susceptibility to T. gondii infection,
eastern quoll populations do not appear to be limited by the parasite or its resultant disease. Significantly
higher seroprevalence is a signal of greater exposure to feral cats at sites where eastern quolls are declining,
suggesting that increased predation, competition or exclusion by feral cats may be precipitating population
declines.
Item Details
| Item Type: | Refereed Article |
|---|---|
| Keywords: | toxoplasmosis, epidemiology, feral cat, Felis catus, population decline, eastern quoll, wildlife disease, parasites, conservation, species decline |
| Research Division: | Environmental Sciences |
| Research Group: | Environmental Science and Management |
| Research Field: | Conservation and Biodiversity |
| Objective Division: | Environment |
| Objective Group: | Flora, Fauna and Biodiversity |
| Objective Field: | Forest and Woodlands Flora, Fauna and Biodiversity |
| UTAS Author: | Fancourt, BA (Miss Bronwyn Fancourt) |
| UTAS Author: | Nicol, SC (Associate Professor Stewart Nicol) |
| UTAS Author: | Hawkins, CE (Dr Clare Hawkins) |
| UTAS Author: | Jones, ME (Professor Menna Jones) |
| UTAS Author: | Johnson, CN (Professor Christopher Johnson) |
| ID Code: | 92923 |
| Year Published: | 2014 |
| Funding Support: | Australian Research Council (DP110103069) |
| Deposited By: | Zoology |
| Deposited On: | 2014-07-01 |
| Last Modified: | 2018-01-31 |
| Downloads: | 413 View Download Statistics |
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