Leptospiral antibodies in red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) in northwest Croatia
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Abstract
In 2000 sera from 59 red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) from northwest Croatia were tested for antibodies against 12 Leptospira interrogans serovars: grippotyphosa, sejroe, australis, pomona, canicola, icterohaemorrhagiae, tarassovi, saxkoebing, ballum, bataviae, poi and hardjo. Using the microscopic agglutination test in 34 (57.6%) of the 59 sera, leptospira antibodies were found for 11 serovars, mainly for the serovar australis, then (in decreasing order) for the serovars sejroe, icterohaemorrhagiae, grippotyphosa and saxkoebing. The results showed a strong correlation with previous results of seroepidemiology and isolation of leptospira from small mammals in northwest Croatia. The role of the red fox as a maintaining leptospira reservoir in the natural foci of leptospirosis is still a matter of question and should be further investigated. Key words: red fox, Vulpes vulpes, leptospira, natural foci, Croati