Ectoparasite infestations of hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) are associated with small-scale landscape structures in an urban-suburban environment.

EcoHealth
Sven ThammKonstans Wells

Abstract

Animals that exploit heterogeneous and patchy environments encounter different local habitat conditions that influence their interaction with the environment, such as the acquisition of parasites. How and at which scales interaction processes between parasites, hosts, and the environment are realized remains largely unknown. We examined the infestation patterns of 56 hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) with fleas and ticks at a small spatial scale within a 12 km(2) area along a suburban-urban gradient in southwestern Germany. The structure and type of habitats surrounding hedgehog capture locations were estimated from digital land cover data within radii of 20, 50, and 100 m. These were assumed to match the ranging area and underlying heterogeneous landscape matrix in which host-parasite interactions take place. Landscape-based models suggested that flea burdens significantly decreased with the diversity and heterogeneity of land cover, as well as with the areal coverage of roads within radii of 50 and 100 m. Overall tick infestation levels were mostly explained by the number of arable patches and the areal coverage of roads within radii of 50 and 100 m, as well as date of capture. Examination of the semivariance in model residuals...Continue Reading

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Citations

Apr 25, 2012·Parasitology Research·Konstans WellsRobert B O'Hara
Jan 31, 2015·The Journal of Parasitology·Hillary S YoungKristofer M Helgen
Aug 22, 2018·International Journal for Parasitology. Parasites and Wildlife·William C DubeRebecca J Safran

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