scholarly journals The changing triad of plague in Uganda: invasive black rats (Rattus rattus) , indigenous small mammals, and their fleas

2020 ◽  
Vol 45 (2) ◽  
pp. 333-355
Author(s):  
Russell E. Enscore ◽  
Nackson Babi ◽  
Gerald Amatre ◽  
Linda Atiku ◽  
Rebecca J. Eisen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammals ◽  
Rattus Rattus ◽  
Black Rats

scholarly journals First Detection of Bartonella spp. in Small Mammals from Rice Storage and Processing Facilities in Myanmar and Sri Lanka

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 658
Author(s):  
Inga Böge ◽  
Martin Pfeffer ◽  
Nyo M. Htwe ◽  
Pyai P. Maw ◽  
Siriwardana Rampalage Sarathchandra ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Sri Lanka ◽  
Small Mammals ◽  
Target Genes ◽  
Bartonella Henselae ◽  
Rattus Rattus ◽  
Suncus Murinus ◽  
Mammal Species ◽  
Urban Settlements ◽  
D 12 ◽  
Zoonotic Bacteria

(1) Background: Bartonella spp. are zoonotic bacteria with small mammals as main reservoirs. Bartonella spp. prevalence in small mammals from Myanmar and Sri Lanka are yet unknown. (2) Methods: Small mammals were snap trapped in Sri Lanka and Myanmar in urban surroundings. Spleens-derived DNA was screened for Bartonella spp. using conventional PCR based on three target genes. Positive samples were sequenced. (3) Results: 994 small mammals were collected comprising 6 species: Bandicota bengalensis, Bandicota indica, Rattus exulans, Rattus rattus, Mus booduga, and Suncus murinus. In Myanmar, the Bartonella prevalence in Bandicoot rats (68.47%) was higher than in Rattus rattus (41.67%), Rattus exulans (21.33%), and Suncus murinus (3.64%). Furthermore the prevalence in Myanmar (34%, n = 495) was twice as high as in Sri Lanka (16%, n = 499). In Sri Lanka, Bartonella spp. occurred almost exclusively in R. rattus. In Myanmar, Bartonella kosoyi was mainly detected (56%), followed by Bartonella sp. KM2529 (15%), Bartonella sp. SE-Bart D (12%) and Bartonella henselae (1%). In Sri Lanka, B. phoceensis (60%) and Bartonella sp. KM2581 (33%) were predominant. (4) Conclusions: Bartonella spp. were detected in all investigated small mammal species from Myanmar and Sri Lanka for the first time. Bartonella kosoyi and B. henselae are zoonotic. As these small mammals originated from urban settlements, human bartonellosis seems likely to occur.

scholarly journals Small mammals of the Addo Elephant National Park

Koedoe ◽  
1975 ◽  
Vol 18 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
P. Swanepoel
Keyword(s):  
Introduced Species ◽  
Small Mammals ◽  
National Park ◽  
Sex Ratios ◽  
Rattus Rattus ◽  
Reproductive Activity ◽  
Body Measurements ◽  
Suricata Suricatta ◽  
Rhabdomys Pumilio ◽  
Mus Minutoides

A survey of the small mammals of the Addo Elephant National Park resulted in a checklist, as well as information on relative numbers, distribution within the Park, reproductive activity, sex ratios, and body measurements. Forty mammals species occur in the Park, while three re-introduced species probably do not occur any longer. Of the 40 species 28 are considered small mammals comprising 13 rodent, eight carnivore, two shrew, two bat, one primate and one lagomorph species, as well as the aardvark: Crociduraflavescens, C. cyanea infumata, Rousettus aegyptiacus, Eptesicus capensis, Cercopithecus pygerythrus, Canis mesomelas, Ictonyx striatus, Poecilogale albinucha, Genetta sp., Herpestes pulverulentus, Suricata suricatta, Proteles cristatus, Felis caracal, Orycteropus afer, Lepus saxatilis, Cryptomys hottentotus, Hystrix africae-australis, Pedetes capensis, Graphiurus murinus, Aethomys namaquensis, Praomys natalensis, Rhabdomys pumilio, Mus minutoides, Rattus rattus, Saccostomys campestris, Desmodillus auricularis, Otomys irroratus and 0. unisulcatus.

scholarly journals Molecular identification of the Trypanosoma (Herpetosoma) lewisi clade in black rats (Rattus rattus) from Australia

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Siobhon L. Egan ◽  
Casey L. Taylor ◽  
Jill M. Austen ◽  
Peter B. Banks ◽  
Liisa A. Ahlstrom ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Phylogenetic Analysis ◽  
Molecular Identification ◽  
Ribosomal Rna ◽  
Rattus Rattus ◽  
Molecular Evidence ◽  
Diverse Range ◽  
Blood Samples ◽  
Trypanosoma Lewisi ◽  
Sydney Australia ◽  
Black Rats

AbstractInvasive rodent species are known hosts for a diverse range of infectious microorganisms and have long been associated with the spread of disease globally. The present study describes molecular evidence for the presence of a Trypanosoma sp. from black rats (Rattus rattus) in northern Sydney, Australia. Sequences of the 18S ribosomal RNA (rRNA) locus were obtained in two out of eleven (18%) blood samples with subsequent phylogenetic analysis confirming the identity within the Trypanosoma lewisi clade.

Ticks on small mammals from an ecotone region impacted by rural activities in Brazil

2021 ◽  
Vol 26 (2) ◽  
pp. 427-437
Author(s):  
Rafael Quirino Moreira ◽  
Vanessa Do Nascimento Ramos ◽  
Adriane Suzin ◽  
Diego Garcia Ramirez ◽  
Paulo Ricardo De Oliveira Roth ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Atlantic Forest ◽  
Small Mammals ◽  
Mus Musculus ◽  
Tick Species ◽  
Rattus Rattus ◽  
Riparian Forests ◽  
Forest Fragments ◽  
Cerrado Biome ◽  
Didelphis Albiventris

We evaluated the role of communities of small mammals from three distinct areas in a region of Cerrado mixed with Atlantic Forest remains for maintenance of tick fauna. Thirty-nine marsupials (Gracilinanus agilis, n = 34; Marmosa paraguaiana, n = 4; Didelphis albiventris, n = 1) and 33 rodents (Oecomys cleberi, n = 10; Nectomys squamipes, n = 4; Calomys tener, n = 4; Hylaeamys megacephalus, n = 4; Akodon sp., n = 3; Rattus rattus, n = 3; Cerradomys subflavus, n = 2; Mus musculus, n = 2; Rhipidomys macrurus, n = 1) were captured. Solely G. agilis and the four rodent species (N. squamipes, R. macrurus, C. subflavus and Akodon sp.) were infested. Four tick species were collected (Amblyomma dubitatum, Amblyomma sculptum, Ixodes loricatus and Ornithodoros mimon). A. dubitatum was the most abundant tick species on hosts. Capture success was higher in the dry season, but the infestation was similar in both seasons. Forested habitats, particularly riparian forests, resulted in higher number of hosts and ticks collected (from hosts and from vegetation), compared to pastures and anthropized sites. The association between C. subflavus and I. loricatus and between A. dubitatum and N. squamipes observed here is the first recorded in Cerrado biome. Areas with more patches of forest, including the Atlantic Forest fragments, tend to present a richest community of small mammals and associated ticks.

Population recovery of alien black rats Rattus rattus : A test of reinvasion theory

2020 ◽  
Vol 45 (3) ◽  
pp. 291-304 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nicole Hansen ◽  
Nelika K. Hughes ◽  
Andrea E. Byrom ◽  
Peter B. Banks
Keyword(s):  
Rattus Rattus ◽  
Population Recovery ◽  
Black Rats

The ecological impacts of commensal species: black rats, Rattus rattus, at the urban–bushland interface

2015 ◽  
Vol 42 (2) ◽  
pp. 86 ◽  
Author(s):  
Peter B. Banks ◽  
Helen M. Smith
Keyword(s):  
Exotic Species ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Rattus Rattus ◽  
Research Priorities ◽  
Ecological Impacts ◽  
Black Rat ◽  
Urban Impacts ◽  
Commensal Species ◽  
Commensal Rodents ◽  
Black Rats

Exotic species have had devastating impacts worldwide and are a major threat to native wildlife. Human commensal species (hereafter commensals) are a special class of exotic species that live largely off the resources associated with human activity. The encroachment of commensals from an urban area into surrounding bushland has been frequently overlooked as an important component of urban impacts, even though human-commensals are common to many urban regions globally. In this review, we present theoretical and empirical evidence for the processes and outcomes occurring when exotic commensal species encroach into native bushland. Specifically we ask when, how and why exotic commensal species encroach into bushland, what determines whether they establish, and what are the ecological consequences. We focus on the black rat, Rattus rattus, arguably the archetypal commensal species with a cosmopolitan distribution and the greatest potential for ecological damage of all the commensal rodents. We expect that the processes that we outline apply to other commensal species more broadly. We argue that commensals are in fact natives of the urban milieu and only become alien when they encroach into peri-urban bushland. We propose that the mechanisms of this encroachment will be different from those of other, non-commensal exotic species because urban areas act as dispersal hubs to overcome many of the barriers of invasion that other exotic species face. We suggest that resource supplementation by urban areas creates a great potential for promoting encroachment, invasion as well as impact. However, biotic and abiotic barriers to invasion are still relevant for commensals, highlighting the need to maintain the integrity of ecosystems and wildlife populations in urban edges so as to prevent commensal incursion. We examine how commensal black rats affect wildlife via three fundamental mechanisms, namely, predation, disease transfer and competition for resources, and also consider their possible positive impacts acting as functional replacements for lost natives. We conclude the review with an outline of research priorities and future directions that are essential for progressing our understanding of the ecology of commensal species.

2006 Southern brown bandicoots Isoodon obesulus obesulus in Belair National Park.

2006 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 147 ◽  
Author(s):  
K. J. Sanderson ◽  
J. Kraehenbuehl
Keyword(s):  
Litter Size ◽  
National Park ◽  
Rattus Rattus ◽  
Ground Cover ◽  
Control Program ◽  
Water Courses ◽  
Fox Control ◽  
North Western ◽  
Black Rats

A population of southern brown bandicoots (Isoodon obesulus obesulus) in Belair National Park (NP) and neighbouring areas was studied from 1995 to 2002. From 1997 to 2002, 181 bandicoots (91 females, 89 males, one unknown) were microchipped. Many animals were captured only once or twice, but data from a few animals showed that bandicoots may live up to four years. Breeding occurred year round, with a mean litter size from 33 litters of 1.8. Bandicoots were trapped close to water courses in areas with thick ground cover. Black rats (Rattus rattus) were active nocturnally in all areas of Belair NP which were trapped, and may be in competition with bandicoots for food and shelter resources. Bandicoots have recently been seen in north-western areas of Belair NP where they have not been seen in years. This expansion of their distribution in the park may be related to a translocation to this area in 1998 and a fox control program which has been carried out since 1988.

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