Baylisascaris transfuga (Ascaridoidea, Nematoda) from European brown bear (Ursus arctos) causing larva migrans in laboratory mice with clinical manifestation

The seasonal dynamics of the prevalence, abundance, and mean intensity of egg excretion by the nematode parasite Baylisascaris transfuga in the European brown bear (Ursus arctos) were monitored relative to environmental factors (mean temperature, humidity, and temperature) over three years. The prevalence, abundance, and mean intensity of egg excretion tended to increase from spring to autumn throughout the monitoring period. The seasonal prevalence (84.2–90.6%), abundance (470.2–545.3 eggs per gramme (EPG) of faeces), mean intensity of excretion (558.3–602.1 EPG), and number of eggs (1150 EPG) were highest in autumn. The prevalence of eggs (up to 48.5%), abundance (37.8–60.6 EPG), and mean intensity of excretion (94.4–125.0 EPG) were high in winter, despite the period of hibernation. The seasonal dynamics of B. transfuga abundance in bears, the mean temperature between spring and autumn, and the seasonal trend of increase in intensity of egg excretion with temperature from winter to summer were interrelated. Abundance differed significantly between winter and autumn, spring and autumn, and summer and autumn (p < 0.0001) in all years and between spring and summer in 2016 (p < 0.005), 2017 (p < 0.05). B. transfuga abundance differed significantly between the seasons over the three years only in spring (p ≤ 0.0001).

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Parasitofauna of Brown Bear (Ursus arctos) in the Protected Landscape Area CHKO — Poľana

Folia Veterinaria ◽

10.1515/fv-2016-0033 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 60 (4) ◽

pp. 20-24 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

T. Orosová ◽

M. Goldová ◽

J. Ciberej ◽

G. Štrkolcová

Keyword(s):

Seasonal Dynamics ◽

Dominant Species ◽

Ursus Arctos ◽

Brown Bear ◽

Young Female ◽

Brown Bears ◽

Baylisascaris Transfuga ◽

Autumn And Winter

Abstract During the years 2015—2016 we obtained 15 samples of faeces of brown bears (Ursus arctos) and 2 samples of gastrointestinal (GI) tracts of young female brown bears for helminthological examinations. The samples of faeces were collected from various sites in the protected landscape area CHKO-Poľana, and the gastrointestinal tracts originated from bears hunted down in the same area within permitted regulation of bear population for 2015. Of the 17 samples collected from the CHKO-Poľana area, 13 were positive for the presence of parasites (76.47 %). Parasitological examinations revealed the presence of 5 species of endoparasites: Eimeria, Cryptosporidium, Sarcocystis, Baylisascaris and Ancylostoma. Roundworms Baylisascaris transfuga (46.15 %) and Ancylostoma spp. (30.77 %) were the dominant species. Observation of the seasonal dynamics showed the highest prevalence of parasites during autumn and winter.

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A frequent roundworm Baylisascaris transfuga in overpopulated brown bears (Ursus arctos) in Slovakia: a problem worthy of attention

Acta Parasitologica ◽

10.1515/ap-2018-0019 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 63 (1) ◽

pp. 167-174 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Gabriela Štrkolcová ◽

Mária Goldová ◽

Viliam Šnábel ◽

Marta Špakulová ◽

Tatiana Orosová ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Ursus Arctos ◽

Current Data ◽

Larva Migrans ◽

Huge Number ◽

Brown Bears ◽

Faecal Examination ◽

Wild Mammals ◽

Wide Range ◽

High Infection ◽

Baylisascaris Transfuga

Abstract The genus Baylisascaris (order Ascaridida) includes numerous relatively host-specific nematodes, which are common in intestines of wild mammals. Some of them may have impact on veterinary and public health, as their larvae have the potential to cause visceral, ocular, and/or neural larva migrans in a wide range of mammals, birds, and humans. Baylisascaris transfuga is a parasite occurring in a range of bear species throughout the world. We present the current data on B. transfuga occurrence in brown bears from a relatively restricted territory of the Poľana Protected Landscape Area in Central Slovakia, obtained by traditional methods (faecal examination, morphology). Species affiliation was confirmed by employing molecular markers generating nuclear 28S and mitochondrial cox1 sequences in adult worms. Based on 17 examined samples (15 excrements and two intestines of young bear females), the occurrence of B. transfuga in the surveyed area was assessed as 52.9%. Both bear females were infected with adult and juvenile worms. Due to the high density of bears in the locality, the high infection rate with ascarids, and the huge number of eggs produced by the parasites, it is apparent that the respective environment, including the inhabited areas, might be markedly contaminated by Baylisascaris eggs. The ability of B. transfuga to serve as a zoonotic agent has not been unambiguously proved; however, this attribute should be considered and subjected to further research.

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GENETIC DIVERSITY OF MARGINAL POPULATIONS OF TWO BEARS SPECIES: BROWN BEAR URSUS ARCTOS LINNAEUS, 1758 AND ASIAN BLACK BEAR URSUS THIBETANUS G. CUVIER, 1823

MOLECULAR PHYLOGENETICS ◽

10.30826/molphy2018-20 ◽

2018 ◽

Author(s):

V. YU. GUSKOV ◽

Keyword(s):

Genetic Diversity ◽

Ursus Arctos ◽

Brown Bear ◽

Black Bear ◽

Marginal Populations ◽

Ursus Thibetanus

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Brown Bear (Ursus arctos) Habitat Use and Food Resources on Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska

10.21236/ada480156 ◽

2007 ◽

Author(s):

Sean D. Farley ◽

Herman Griese ◽

Rick Sinnott ◽

Jessica Coltrane ◽

Chris Garner ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Habitat Use ◽

Air Force ◽

Ursus Arctos ◽

Brown Bear ◽

Food Resources ◽

Air Force Base

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Using Landscape Change Analysis and Stakeholder Perspective to Identify Driving Forces of Human–Wildlife Interactions

Land ◽

10.3390/land10020146 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (2) ◽

pp. 146

Author(s):

Mihai Mustățea ◽

Ileana Pătru-Stupariu

Keyword(s):

Landscape Change ◽

Ursus Arctos ◽

Driving Forces ◽

Brown Bear ◽

Mountain Range ◽

Change Analysis ◽

Local Stakeholders ◽

Stakeholder Perspective ◽

Forested Ecosystems ◽

Forest Habitats

Human–wildlife interactions (HWI) were frequent in the post-socialist period in the mountain range of Central European countries where forest habitats suffered transitions into built-up areas. Such is the case of the Upper Prahova Valley from Romania. In our study, we hypothesized that the increasing number of HWI after 1990 could be a potential consequence of woodland loss. The goal of our study was to analyse the effects of landscape changes on HWI. The study consists of the next steps: (i) applying 450 questionnaires to local stakeholders (both citizens and tourists) in order to collect data regarding HWI temporal occurrences and potential triggering factors; (ii) investigating the relation between the two variables through the Canonical Correspondence Analysis (CCA); (iii) modelling the landscape spatial changes between 1990 and 2018 for identifying areas with forest loss; (iv) overlapping the distribution of both the households affected by HWI and areas with loss of forested ecosystems. The local stakeholders indicate that the problematic species are the brown bear (Ursus arctos), the wild boar (Sus scrofa), the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) and the grey wolf (Canis lupus). The number of animal–human interactions recorded an upward trend between 1990 and 2018, and the most significant driving factors were the regulation of hunting practices, the loss of habitats, and artificial feeding. The landscape change analysis reveals that between 1990 and 2018, the forest habitats were replaced by built-up areas primarily on the outskirts of settlements, these areas coinciding with frequent HWI. The results are valid for both forest ecosystems conservation in the region, wildlife management, and human infrastructures durable spatial planning.

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Plasma ochratoxin A in the European brown bear ( Ursus arctos L.) from Croatia

Toxicology Letters ◽

10.1016/j.toxlet.2017.07.860 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 280 ◽

pp. S198

Author(s):

Dubravka Rašić ◽

Maja Lazarus ◽

Đuro Huber ◽

Slaven Reljić ◽

Maja Peraica

Keyword(s):

Ochratoxin A ◽

Ursus Arctos ◽

Brown Bear

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Fallot's Tetralogy in a European Brown Bear (Ursus arctos)

Journal of Wildlife Diseases ◽

10.7589/0090-3558-41.4.825 ◽

2005 ◽

Vol 41 (4) ◽

pp. 825-828 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Erik Ågren ◽

Arne Söderberg ◽

Torsten Mörner

Keyword(s):

Ursus Arctos ◽

Brown Bear ◽

Fallot's Tetralogy ◽

Fallot’S Tetralogy

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Phenological synchronization disrupts trophic interactions between Kodiak brown bears and salmon

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences ◽

10.1073/pnas.1705248114 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 114 (39) ◽

pp. 10432-10437 ◽

Cited By ~ 44

Author(s):

William W. Deacy ◽

Jonathan B. Armstrong ◽

William B. Leacock ◽

Charles T. Robbins ◽

David D. Gustine ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Sockeye Salmon ◽

Ursus Arctos ◽

Large Body ◽

Brown Bear ◽

Switching Behavior ◽

Air Temperatures ◽

Trophic Resources ◽

Energy Flows ◽

Strength Of Interaction ◽

Prey Interaction

Climate change is altering the seasonal timing of life cycle events in organisms across the planet, but the magnitude of change often varies among taxa [Thackeray SJ, et al. (2016) Nature 535:241–245]. This can cause the temporal relationships among species to change, altering the strength of interaction. A large body of work has explored what happens when coevolved species shift out of sync, but virtually no studies have documented the effects of climate-induced synchronization, which could remove temporal barriers between species and create novel interactions. We explored how a predator, the Kodiak brown bear (Ursus arctos middendorffi), responded to asymmetric phenological shifts between its primary trophic resources, sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) and red elderberry (Sambucus racemosa). In years with anomalously high spring air temperatures, elderberry fruited several weeks earlier and became available during the period when salmon spawned in tributary streams. Bears departed salmon spawning streams, where they typically kill 25–75% of the salmon [Quinn TP, Cunningham CJ, Wirsing AJ (2016) Oecologia 183:415–429], to forage on berries on adjacent hillsides. This prey switching behavior attenuated an iconic predator–prey interaction and likely altered the many ecological functions that result from bears foraging on salmon [Helfield JM, Naiman RJ (2006) Ecosystems 9:167–180]. We document how climate-induced shifts in resource phenology can alter food webs through a mechanism other than trophic mismatch. The current emphasis on singular consumer-resource interactions fails to capture how climate-altered phenologies reschedule resource availability and alter how energy flows through ecosystems.

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