The present study reports field data of ticks infesting wild carnivores captured from July 1998 to September 2004 in Brazil. Additional data were obtained from one tick collection and from previous published data of ticks on carnivores in Brazil. During field work, a total of 3437 ticks were collected from 89 Cerdocyon thous (crab-eating fox), 58 Chrysocyon brachyurus (maned wolf), 30 Puma concolor (puma), 26 Panthera onca (jaguar), 12 Procyon cancrivorus (crab-eating raccoon), 4 Speothos venaticus (bush dog), 6 Pseudalopex vetulus (hoary fox), 6 Nasua nasua (coati), 6 Leopardus pardalis (ocelot), 2 Leopardus tigrinus (oncilla), 1 Leopardus wiedii (margay), 1 Herpailurus yagouaroundi (jaguarundi), 1 Oncifelis colocolo (pampas cat), 1 Eira barbara (tayara), 1 Galictis vittata (grison), 1 Lontra longicaudis (neotropical otter), and 1 Potus flavus (kinkajou). Data obtained from the Acari Collection IBSP included a total of 381 tick specimens collected on 13 C. thous, 8 C. brachyurus, 3 P. concolor, 10 P. onca, 3 P. cancrivorus, 4 N. nasua, 1 L. pardalis, 1 L. wiedii, 4 H. yagouaroundi, 1 Galictis cuja (lesser grison), and 1 L. longicaudis. The only tick-infested carnivore species previously reported in Brazil, for which we do not present any field data are Pseudalopex gymnocercus (pampas fox), Conepatus chinga (Molina's hog-nosed skunk), and Conepatus semistriatus (striped hog-nosed skunk). We report the first tick records in Brazil on two Felidae species (O. colocolo, H. yagouaroundi), two Canidae species (P. vetulus, S. venaticus), one Procyonidae species (P. flavus) and one Mustelidae (E. barbara). Tick infestation remains unreported for 5 of the 26 Carnivora species native in Brazil: Oncifelis geoffroyi (Geoffroy's cat), Atelocynus microtis (short-eared dog), Pteronura brasiliensis (giant otter), Mustela africana (Amazon weasel), and Bassaricyon gabbii (olingo). Our field data comprise 16 tick species represented by the genera Amblyomma (12 species), Ixodes (1 species), Dermacentor (1 species), Rhipicephalus (1 species), and Boophilus (1 species). Additional 5 tick species (3 Amblyomma species and 1 species from each of the genera Ixodes and Ornithodoros) were reported in the literature. The most common ticks on Carnivora hosts were Amblyomma ovale (found on 14 host species), Amblyomma cajennense (10 species), Amblyomma aureolatum (10 species), Amblyomma tigrinum (7 species), Amblyomma parvum (7 species), and Boophilus microplus (7 species).

The aim of the current study was to investigate the exposure of captive wild felids to various infectious pathogens using serological and molecular methods. One hundred and fifty-nine neotropic felids and 51 exotic felids from 28 captive settings in Brazil were tested. While antibodies against Feline parvovirus and Feline coronavirus (FCoV), Feline calicivirus and Bartonella spp. were frequently detected by serologic tests, antibodies against Felid herpesvirus 1 or infection with hemotropic mycoplasmas were less prevalent. Serologic evidence of exposure to Ehrlichia spp., Feline immunodeficiency virus, and Feline leukemia virus (FeLV) was detected rarely, and infections with FeLV, Ehrlichia spp., and Cytauxzoon spp. were found infrequently. The detected Bartonella sequence was molecularly similar to B. koehlerae and B. henselae; for Cytauxzoon, the sequence resembled those from domestic cats. No Anaplasma phagocytophilum and Theileria spp. infections were detected. The positive test results varied significantly among different facilities and species. Additionally, FCoV seropositivity was more prevalent in captivity than in free-ranging populations. Results suggest that testing is appropriate prior to relocation of felids.

Cytauxzoon spp. DNA was detected for the first time in blood samples from asymptomatic Brazilian wild captive felids. In 2006, 72 EDTA blood samples from seven wild felids species: Puma concolor (puma), Leopardus pardalis (ocelot), Puma yagouaroundi (jaguarundi), Leopardus wiedii (margay), Leopardus tigrinus (little spotted cat), Oncifelis colocolo (pampas cat) and Panthera onca (jaguar) were analyzed using polymerase chain reaction to amplify the 18S rRNA gene segment in order to verify the presence of Cytauxzoon spp. DNA. Nine samples were positive: six ocelots, two pumas, and one jaguar. In Brazil, wild felids may be natural reservoirs for Cytauxzoon spp.

Hepatozoon spp. are apicomplexan parasites that infect a wide variety of animals. The infection occurs through the ingestion of a hematophagous arthropod definitive host. Herein, we assessed the presence of Hepatozoon spp. in 165 captive wild felids and 100 captive wild canids using molecular techniques. We found that 6 felids (4 little spotted cats, 1 jaguarondi, and 1 puma) and 5 canids (2 bush dogs, 1 fox, 1 crab-eating fox, and 1 maned wolf) were positive for Hepatozoon spp. Hepatozoon spp. may be a potential pathogen and an opportunistic parasite in immunocompromised animals or if occurring in concomitant infections. Because most Brazilian wild felids and canids are endangered, knowing whether Hepatozoon infection represents a threat for these animals is crucial.

Ehrlichiosis, an emergent tick-borne disease that affects both humans and animals, may represent a threat to the survival and preservation of wild felids in Brazil. There are few studies of ehrlichiosis in wild felids in Brazil, but Ehrlichia spp. are present in domestic cats. Antibodies to Ehrlichia canis have been reported in a puma (Puma concolor). In this study we assessed the presence of these hemoparasites in the blood of Brazilian wild captive felids. Of the 72 animals tested, 5 (7%) were seropositive for the E. canis antigen, and 11 (15%) were positive for E. canis DNA sequences. We also performed sequence alignment to establish the identity of the parasite species infecting these animals using 16S rRNA and omp-1 genes. Sequences based on 16S rRNA were similar to those found in dogs and cats from Thailand, Brazil, China, and Taiwan and with E. canis obtained from a single individual (human) in Venezuela. Ehrlichia sp. sequence from sampled felines based on omp-1 gene was similar to the p28 and p30 multigene family of E. canis. To our knowledge, this is the first study of molecular detection of Ehrlichia sp. in Brazilian wild feline species.

This study was designed to detect antibodies to Toxoplasma gondii and Neospora caninum in wild captive carnivores maintained in Brazilian zoos. Blood samples were collected from 142 Brazilian wild felids and 19 exotic felids in zoos, and 3 European wolves (Canis lupus) and 94 Brazilian wild canids maintained in captivity in Brazilian zoos of São Paulo, Mato Grosso states and Federal District. One hundred and two (63.4%) and 70 (50.3%) of the 161 wild felids tested were seropositive for T. gondii and N. caninum by indirect immunofluorescent assay test (IFAT), respectively. Among sampled wild canids, 49 (50.5%) and 40 (41.2%) animals were seropositive for T. gondii and N. caninum antigens by IFAT, respectively. To our knowledge, this is the first serological detection of antibodies to N. caninum in Brazilian wild captive felids and bush dogs (Speothos venaticus (Lund)).

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Hemotropic mycoplasmas, epicellular erythrocytic bacterial parasites lacking a cell wall, are the causative agents of infectious anemia in numerous mammalian species. The presence of hemotropic mycoplasmas in blood samples of neotropical and exotic wild canids and felids from Brazilian zoos were recorded using molecular techniques. Blood samples were collected from 146 Brazilian wild felids, 19 exotic felids, 3 European wolves (Canis lupus), and from 97 Brazilian wild canids from zoos in the Brazilian states of São Paulo and Mato Grosso and the Federal District. Using conventional polymerase chain reaction (PCR), this work found 22 (13%) wild felids positive to Candidatus Mycoplasma haemominutum [4 jaguars (Panthera onca); 3 pumas (Puma concolor); 10 ocelots (Leopardus pardalis); 2 jaguarondis (Puma yagouaroundi); and 3 little spotted cats (Leopardus tigrinus)]. Only one little spotted cat (Leopardus tigrinus) was positive to Mycoplasma haemofelis, and none was positive to Candidatus Mycoplasma turicensis. Two bush dogs (Speothos venaticus) were positive for a Mycoplasma sp. closely related to Candidatus Mycoplasma haematoparvum, and two European wolves were positive for a Mycoplasma sp. closely related to Candidatus Mycoplasma haemominutum. This is the first study regarding the molecular detection of hemotropic mycoplasmas in wild canids.