Spatial risk for tuberculosis in relation to domestic and wild ungulate distribution assessed by unmanned aerial systems

Abstract

Resumen del póster presentado a la 62nd International Conference of the Wildlife Disease Association. "Utilizing Wildlife Health to Conserve Biodiversity in the Appalachians and Beyond", celebrada en Knoxville, Tennessee (USA) del 27 de julio al 2 de agosto de 2013.The study of host aggregation is relevant in the study of the transmission of diseases in ungulates, both from epidemiological andmanagement perspectives. Ungulates in South Spain are frequently exposed to mycobacteria. Population demography and behavior, as well as environmental exposure may play an important role for intra- and inter-specific pathogen transmission. We hypothesized that Mycobacterium bovis infection prevalence in wild ungulates depends on host ecology and variations in prevalence will reflect variation in the interaction between hosts and environmental aggregation risk factors, namely water points during the dry season.We aimed to study the role of water sources (water holes and marsh-shrub ecotone) relative to natural resources and other hosts in ungulate distribution and environmental TB infection risk in Doñana National Park (DNP, South western Spain). For this purpose, and by using a novel approach (unmanned aerial systems), we mapped the spatial distribution and aggregation pattern of ungulates respect to potential environmental risk factors (environmental water sources) and the distribution of other hosts during the period of the year when water resources becomes more limiting, i.e., drought. Drought severely reduces foodavailability,and therefore aggregation around water resources is expected to be maximal This study revealed that spatial aggregation is significant risk factor for mycobacterial infection in wild ungulates, reflecting both interspecific and intraspecific transmission. Modeling revealed that environmental water sources could act not only as important environmental sources ofmycobacteria, but also by favoring closer contactbetween the species in DNP. This could promote the transmission of M. bovis by close contact and/or indirecttransmission.Peer Reviewe