The use of pre-harvest fire in sugarcane fields surprisingly results in an increase
in the abundance of Neotropical Sigmodontinae rodents, which might carry
hantavirus. By contrast, fire suspension induces a decline in rodents in the first
5 years. The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of sugarcane harvest
regimes on hantavirus prevalence in wild rodents. Field collections were carried
out on a sugarcane production area in Northeast S˜ao Paulo, which is responsible
for 30% of the ethanol production in Brazil. A few years after pre-harvest fire
suspension, a high prevalence of hantavirus was found in small rodents at lower
population density, but apparently higher population growth rate. Differences in
life cycle between the rodents and their predators may explain such density
patterns, as small rodents can breed twice or even three times each year, whereas
their predators usually breed only once a year. Similarly, the temporal dynamics
of the predator–prey relationship suggests that hantavirus prevalence is related to
small rodent’s population growth and not density. Only Akodon montensis,
Calomys tener, and Necromys lasiurus contained immunoglobulin G antibodiesagainst the recombinant nucleoprotein of Araraquara orthohantavirus, a genotype
of Andes orthohantavirus, with no interspecific variation in seroprevalence among
these species. However, males presented higher prevalence rate than females, possibly
due to a male-biased dispersal pattern and a higher frequency of antagonistic
interactions. Governance measures to mitigate the role of small wild rodents on
the emergence of hantavirus in agricultural landscapes dominated by sugarcane
plantations should include the use of wildlife-friendly management techniques
(e.g., to mitigate the mortality of the predators of small rodents), human capacity
building concerning wildlife-related conflicts, and multifunctionality of agricultural
landscapes. Future studies should prioritize the possible relationship between
microhabitat structure and hantavirus prevalence in small rodents in agricultural
landscapes dominated by sugarcane fields.info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
