Plague Exposure in Mammalian Wildlife Across the Western United States

Abstract

Plague is caused by a bacterial pathogen (Yersinia pestis) that can infect a wide range of mammal species, but its presence in wildlife is often underappreciated. Using a large-scale data set (n = 44,857) that details the extent of Y. pestis exposure in wildlife, we document exposure in 18 wildlife species, including coyotes (Canis latrans), bobcats (Lynx rufus), and black bears (Ursus americanus). Evidence of plague activity is widespread, with seropositive animals detected in every western state in the contiguous United States. Pathogen monitoring systems in wildlife that are both large scale and long-term are rare, yet they open the door for analyses on potential shifts in distribution that have occurred over time because of climate or land use changes. The data generated by these long-term monitoring programs, combined with recent advances in our understanding of pathogen ecology, offer a clearer picture of zoonotic pathogens and the risks they pose.

Seroprevalence, Blood Chemistry, and Patterns of Canine Parvovirus, Distemper Virus, Plague, and Tularemia in Free-Ranging Coyotes ( Canis Latrans ) in Northern New Mexico, Usa

“…Across the US, reported seroprevalence in coyotes ranges from 0 to 73% in California, Utah, and Wyoming (Arjo et al 2003), 12% in California (Hoar et al 2003), 13% in South Dakota (Schuler et al 2021) and 28% in urban environments in Denver, Colorado (Malmlov et al 2014). Bevins et al (2021) reported 8.5% plague seroprevalence in New Mexico's coyotes, and 20.5% exposure rates to plague among all mammals monitored in New Mexico.…”

Pneumonic Plague: Incidence, Transmissibility and Future Risks

“…It is especially at home in populations of small mammals, typically rodents, but even so, the range of infected species within a focus can be much wider than this and include predators such as coyotes, bobcats and black bears as seen in the Western United States [19]. Some foci, for example those found across the territories of the Russian Federation and former Soviet republics, are believed to be ancient [20] whilst others such as the island of Madagascar [12] or the Mid-West of America are more recent, being the product of communication and trade [19]. There is a risk of human plague wherever the presence of plague natural foci and human populations co-exist.…”

Prevalence of Eucoleus garfiai in Wild Boars Hunted at Different Altitudes in the Campania and Latium Regions (Italy)

“…In the case of large wild mammals, some studies have demonstrated relationships between oxidative stress markers and living environments both for individual populations and for the interspecific territory sharing [6,7]. Great interest nowadays is given to soil born-diseases [8,9], and, in wildlife, studies are mainly focused on soil pathogens which are of public health interest such as Francisella tularensis, Yersinia pestis, Bacillus anthracis, Coxiella burnetii, Avian influenza virus H5N1 [10], Swine flu H1N1 [11], Coronavirus [12], and different helminths [13] as they can negatively affect humans, livestock and domestic animals [14][15][16][17][18][19]. However, more and more studies have underlined the importance of pathogenic and saprophytic microorganisms and macrorganisms, such as earthworms, as a valuable tool for a variety of ecology-based applications, such as environmental bioindicators [20][21][22].…”