Volume 31, Issue 5, May 2015, Pages 167–173
Opinion
Human–wildlife interactions and zoonotic transmission of Echinococcus multilocularis
Highlights
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- Echinococcus multilocularis transmission is shaped by human–wildlife interactions.
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- The ‘landscape of fear’ concept should be considered for parasite control measures.
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- Attitudes towards wildlife shape carnivore densities and behavior.
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- The impact of human factors should be considered in the assessment of interventions.
The life cycle of the zoonotic cestode Echinococcus multilocularis
depends on canids (mainly red foxes) as definitive hosts and on their
specific predation on rodent species (intermediate hosts). Host
densities and predation rates are key drivers for infection with
parasite eggs. We demonstrate that they strongly depend on multi-faceted
human–wildlife interactions: vaccination against rabies, elimination of
top predators, and changing attitude towards wildlife (feeding)
contribute to high fox densities. The absence of large canids, low
hunting pressure, and positive attitudes towards foxes modify their
anti-predator response (‘landscape of fear’), promoting their tameness,
which in turn facilitates the colonization of residential areas and
modifies parasite transmission. Such human factors should be considered
in the assessment of any intervention and prevention strategy.
Keywords
- human attitudes towards wildlife;
- intraguild predation;
- island tameness;
- landscape of fear;
- parasite transmission;
- wildlife feeding
Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
