Sarcoptic mange in vicuña (Vicugna vicugna) population in Peru

Abstract

The vicuña (Vicugna vicugna) is a wild South American camelid (SAC) that inhabits the highlands of South America between 3200 and 4700 m above sea level, and is distributed in the following five countries: Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Argentina and ecuador (Marín and others 2007, Wheeler and hoces 1997). Peru holds the greatest vicuña population with 61.4 per cent of the world's population. Vicuñas are of great economic importance because they produce the finest animal fibre in the world (Wheeler and hoces 1997, Sahley and others 2007). Several parasitic diseases have been reported in SACs. Some of them are caused by external parasites such as mites (Ballweber 2009). Currently, three types of mange mites have been reported in the SAC: sarcoptic, psoroptic and chorioptic. Sarcoptic mange is a common parasitic skin disease caused by the mite Sarcoptes scabiei (Geurden and others 2003, Mellanby 1947). This ectoparasite has a cosmopolitan distribution and can infect a variety of mammals including human beings, domestic and wild animals (Fain 1968, 1978, Pence and Ueckermann 2002). This study reports the presence of natural sarcoptic mange infestation in a vicuña population from Peru. The study was conducted on a vicuña population from the National Reserve 'Pampas Galeras' localised in the department of Ayacucho, Peru, at 4000 m above sea level (W 74°30′; S 14°41′). The habitat of the vicuñas has an area of 6500 hectares, but the area of the National Reserve is estimated at about 60,000 hectares which includes several rural communities (SeRNANP 2012). During vicuña shearing season (June 2012), a total of 955 vicuñas (adults, young and crias), were captured by the community people, an event commonly known as the 'chaku'. Only 200 adult vicuñas were assigned to this study by the permission of the steering committee for the reserve. Twenty-four out of 200 vicuñas (>1-yearold) were found with skin lesions that were consistent with mange, characterised at various sites (ventral abdomen, inguinal region and limbs) by alopecia, erythema, thick crusts and fissured skin (Figs 1 and 2). The affected animals had pruritus and were in poor body condition. Skin scrapings were collected from all clinically affected animals and were preserved in labelled vials with 70 per cent ethanol (one to two weeks) before being soaked in 10 per cent potassium hydroxide

Prevalence and molecular characterization of Sarcoptes scabiei from vicuñas (Vicugna vicugna) from Southern Peruvian Andes

“…This study indicates that sarcoptic mange is a common disease in vicuñas from Cuzco, in the Southern Peruvian Andes, showing a prevalence of 19.3%. Although epidemiological studies of sarcoptic mange in vicuñas are very limited, reports indicate prevalence ranging from 12 to 37% in Peru (Castillo et al ., 2019; Gomez-Puerta et al ., 2013). Likewise, sarcoptic mange outbreaks have been documented in the neighbouring countries, reporting outbreaks in individual vicuñas from Chile (Montecino-Latorre et al ., 2020) and prevalence of 46.2% (6/13 animals) in Bolivia (Ruiz, 2016) and 0.9% (4/450 animals) in Argentina (Arzamendia et al ., 2012).…”

“…During this event, commonly known as the ‘chaku’, all animals were clinically evaluated by veterinarians to diagnose the presence of lesions compatible with mange. For this, areas of the face, ear, chest, abdomen, axillae, groin, legs and interdigital spaces were examined since the disease occurs mainly in these areas in vicuñas (Gomez-Puerta et al ., 2013). In addition, skin scrapings samples from each suspected animal were collected and stored in plastic vials with 70% ethanol duly labelled, indicating the animal data and affected area.…”

“…Currently, the vicuña population is about 208 000 animals throughout Peru (Acebes, 2020). However, the increase in the vicuña population was accompanied by the appearance or increase of some diseases, such as sarcoptic mange (Gomez-Puerta et al ., 2013; Montecino-Latorre et al ., 2020).…”

Sarcoptic mange outbreak decimates South American wild camelid populations in San Guillermo National Park, Argentina

“…However, information on the distribution and prevalence of this disease is extremely scarce, restricted to a low number of sites, and mostly reported in gray literature. In camelids, the early manifestation of sarcoptic mange includes mild to severe pruritus with erythema, papules, and pustules, which commonly evolve to a chronic stage with crusting, alopecia and lichenification and thickening of the skin (hyperkeratosis) [22][23][24]. Difficulty walking and pain have been described, secondary to skin infections and fissures [25].…”

Case Report: Successful Treatment of Sarcoptic Mange in European Camelids

“…The most common conditions are related to the digestive tract, metabolic disorders, skin lesions and eye problems (2)(3)(4). Several types of mites have been reported in alpacas; however, sarcoptic mange seems to be the most severe in regard with the clinical manifestations (2,5,6). Lesions due to scabiosis appear first in the head area, and they can extend to the legs or even the whole body, manifested in the form of alopecia and excoriations (2).…”