Exotic pediculosis and hair-loss syndrome in deer (Odocoileus hemionus) populations in California

Abstract

Two chewing lice have been associated with the recent emergence of EPOD. Damalinia (Cervicola) sp. was first reported in BTD from western Washington and Oregon, 2 whereas Bovicola tibialis was found on Rocky Mountain mule deer × black-tailed deer hybrids in south-central Washington in 2005-2006. 18 In addition, the African blue louse (Linognathus africanus) caused alopecia and mortalities in deer in California in 1967 3 but is not considered a significant contributor to the recent emergence of EPOD.The clinical manifestation of EPOD caused by D. (Cervicola) and B. tibialis seems to be similar, and infested animals may exhibit pruritus and groom and rub extensively because of the irritation caused by the chewing lice, causing hair damage, hair loss, secondary skin hyperpigmentation, and hyperkeratosis. 1 The syndrome is seen primarily in fawns and yearlings but also can affect adult animals. In Oregon and Washington, prevalences of hair loss as high as 74% in BTD fawns and 33% in does were observed in affected herds. Abstract. Infestation with nonnative, "exotic" lice was first noted in Washington black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus) in 1994 and has since then spread throughout the western United States. In California, infestation with the exotic louse Damalinia (Cervicola) sp. was first detected in black-tailed deer from northern California in 2004, and, in 2009, the exotic louse species Bovicola tibialis and Linognathus africanus were identified on mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus californicus) in central Sierra Nevada in association with a mortality event. Exotic lice have since been detected in various locations throughout the state. We describe the geographic distribution of these exotic lice within California, using data from 520 livecaptured and 9 postmortem-sampled, free-ranging mule deer examined between 2009 and 2014. Data from live-captured deer were used to assess possible associations between louse infestation and host age, host sex, migratory behavior, season, and blood selenium and serum copper concentrations. Damalinia (Cervicola) sp. and B. tibialis lice were distinctively distributed geographically, with D. (Cervicola) sp. infesting herds in northern and central coastal California, B. tibialis occurring in the central coastal mountains and the Sierra Nevada, and L. africanus occurring only sporadically. Younger age classes and low selenium concentrations were significantly associated with exotic louse infestation, whereas no significant relationship was detected with serum copper levels. Our results show that exotic lice are widespread in California, and younger age classes with low blood selenium concentrations are more likely to be infested with lice than older deer.

Micro minerales en hígado de Ovis canadensis mexicana Merriam, y Odocoileus hemionus eremicus Mearns en Sonora, México

“…En individuos de BC, en vida libre, se han encontrado deficiencias de Se, Cu y Zn (Poppenga et al, 2012), en específico, las deficiencias de Se están asociadas a la disminución de sus poblaciones (Carpenter, 2005). En VB se encontró relación positiva entre concentraciones bajas de Se en sangre y la presencia de piojos (Roug et al, 2016); además, concentraciones bajas de Se en hígado se han asociado con la presencia de la enfermedad del músculo blanco, ocasionando baja producción y supervivencia de cervatos (Fielder, 1986). En México, pese a que hay pocas publicaciones sobre diagnóstico de micro minerales limitantes en ungulados silvestre, en las Unidades de Manejo para la Conservación de la Vida Silvestre del noroeste de México, hay uso indiscriminado de suplementos minerales.…”

“…Una dieta deficiente, desequilibrada o con alta cantidad de un mineral, provoca cambios en la forma o concentración de éste en tejidos y fluidos corporales, hasta alcanzar valores inferiores o superiores a los límites permisibles (Underwood y Suttle, 2003). Al respecto, los contenidos de minerales en hígado son los que reflejan el estado nutricional de los ungulados de forma más objetiva (Roug et al, 2016), por ello, se determinaron las concentraciones de Fe, Cu, Zn, Se, Mn, Co, Cr y B, como indicadoras de deficiencias o excesos, en muestras de hígado de borrego cimarrón y de venado bura.…”