Implications for One Health of Anthelmintic Use in Wildlife Conservation Programs

Infectious diseases affect people, domestic animals and wildlife alike, with many pathogens being able to infect multiple species. Fifty years ago, following the wide-scale manufacture and use of antibiotics and vaccines, it seemed that the battle against infections was being won for the human population. Since then, however, and in addition to increasing antimicrobial resistance among bacterial pathogens, there has been an increase in the emergence of, mostly viral, zoonotic diseases from wildlife, sometimes causing fatal outbreaks of epidemic proportions. Concurrently, infectious disease has been identified as an increasing threat to wildlife conservation. A synthesis published in 2000 showed common anthropogenic drivers of disease threats to biodiversity and human health, including encroachment and destruction of wildlife habitat and the human-assisted spread of pathogens. Almost two decades later, the situation has not changed and, despite improved knowledge of the underlying causes, little has been done at the policy level to address these threats. For the sake of public health and wellbeing, human-kind needs to work better to conserve nature and preserve the ecosystem services, including disease regulation, that biodiversity provides while also understanding and mitigating activities which lead to disease emergence. We consider that holistic, One Health approaches to the management and mitigation of the risks of emerging infectious diseases have the greatest chance of success. This article is part of the themed issue ‘One Health for a changing world: zoonoses, ecosystems and human well-being’.

Download Full-text

THE ROLE OF ONE HEALTH IN WILDLIFE CONSERVATION: A CHALLENGE AND OPPORTUNITY

Journal of Wildlife Diseases ◽

10.7589/2014-01-004 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 51 (1) ◽

pp. 1-8 ◽

Cited By ~ 27

Author(s):

Danielle E. Buttke ◽

Daniel J. Decker ◽

Margaret A. Wild

Keyword(s):

Wildlife Conservation ◽

One Health

Download Full-text

Interspecific association between brown-nosed coatis and capybaras in an urban area of Brazil

Boletim do Museu Paraense Emílio Goeldi Ciências Naturais ◽

10.46357/bcnaturais.v15i3.284 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 15 (3) ◽

pp. 843-848

Author(s):

Andreza Castro Rucco ◽

Heitor Miraglia Herrera ◽

Filipe Martins Santos ◽

Grasiela Edith de Oliveira Porfirio

Keyword(s):

Urban Area ◽

Wildlife Conservation ◽

One Health ◽

New Records ◽

Interspecies Interaction ◽

Interspecific Association ◽

New Host ◽

Nasua Nasua ◽

Hydrochoerus Hydrochaeris ◽

New Host Species

This study aimed to report an interspecific association between brown-nosed coatis (Nasua nasua) and capybaras (Hydrochoerus hydrochaeris) in an urban area of Brazil. We recorded N. nasua feeding on ectoparasites (ticks) attached to H. hydrochaeris, which in turns, did not show any reaction of discomfort with the situation. Thus, we report an unprecedented case of protocooperation between apparently unrelated species. Moreover, the interspecies interaction reveals other interesting scenarios as the inclusion of ticks in the diet of N. Nasua and the possibility of parasite transmission and adaptation to a new host species, a phenomenon known as ‘host switching’. We associate these new records as adaptations of wildlife to urbanization, and their effects should be further investigated from both wildlife conservation and ‘One Health’ approach.

Download Full-text

One Health Evaluation: A Case Study at the University of Bologna

Frontiers in Public Health ◽

10.3389/fpubh.2021.661490 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 ◽

Author(s):

Maurizio Aragrande ◽

Massimo Canali ◽

Mariana Roccaro ◽

Elisabetta Ferraro ◽

Alessandra Bonoli ◽

...

Keyword(s):

South Africa ◽

Wildlife Conservation ◽

One Health ◽

Preliminary Evaluation ◽

Human Interface ◽

Quantitative Metrics ◽

Health Initiatives ◽

The One ◽

The University

The level of One Health (OH), or “One Health-ness,” of health interventions has been defined as the capacity to operate according to six dimensions concerning OH operations and OH infrastructures, respectively (thinking, planning, and working; and information sharing, reciprocal learning, and systemic organization). Although health initiatives and research increasingly claim their orientation toward OH, such a capacity is rarely assessed. The objective of this study is to evaluate the One Health-ness of the academic team of the University of Bologna (UNIBO Team) working in the “ELEPHANT” project (Empowering universities' Learning and rEsearch caPacities in the one Health Approach for the maNagement of animals at the wildlife, livestock and human interface in SouTh Africa). This project involves universities, six from South Africa and two from Europe, and aims at embedding OH in research and learning to enable the control of diseases at the human, animal, and environmental interface, and to emphasize the interests of local African communities with wildlife conservation. The methodology adopts the NEOH method, developed in 2018 by the EU-COST Action, “Network for the Evaluation of One Health.” The approach is based on questionnaires delivered to participants, which focus on the six OH dimensions, and then translate answers into quantitative metrics through the OH Index (OHI) and the OH Ratio (OHR). The following two evaluation levels are foreseen: the whole project and the single partner institutions. The evaluations are carried on in parallel, with preliminary, mid-term, and final assessments, to monitor the efficacy of the project actions. The preliminary evaluation of the UNIBO Team resulted in the OHI of 0.23 and the OHR of 1.69 which indicate a low degree of OH-ness and an imbalance between OH operation and OH infrastructure. The UNIBO case study will be the baseline for the evaluation of the other partner institutions involved in the ELEPHANT project. This type of evaluation can support the implementation of OH practices inside a project and underpin the strategies that allow to achieving more effective results. Any improvement in the OH-ness of each single academic team can be also considered as a result of the ELEPHANT project, thus showing its multiplier effect in the context.

Download Full-text

Conflicting attitudes toward state wildlife conservation programs in Kenya

Society & Natural Resources ◽

10.1080/08941929509380907 ◽

1995 ◽

Vol 8 (2) ◽

pp. 133-144 ◽

Cited By ~ 33

Author(s):

John S. Akama ◽

Christopher L. Lant ◽

G. Wesley Burnett

Keyword(s):

Wildlife Conservation ◽

Conservation Programs

Download Full-text

A simple, sufficient, and consistent method to score the status of threats and demography of imperiled species

10.7287/peerj.preprints.1860v1 ◽

2016 ◽

Author(s):

Jacob W Malcom ◽

Whitney M Webber ◽

Ya-Wei Li

Keyword(s):

Endangered Species ◽

Wildlife Conservation ◽

Program Effectiveness ◽

Conservation Status ◽

Free Form ◽

Conservation Programs ◽

Program Administrators ◽

The Status ◽

Trend Data ◽

Strategic Allocation

Managers of large wildlife conservation programs need information on the conservation status of each of many species to strategically allocate limited resources. Oversimplified status data, however, runs the risk of missing information essential to strategic allocation. Conservation status consists of two components, the status of threats a species faces and the species’ demographic status. Neither component alone is sufficient to characterize conservation status. Here we present a simple key for scoring threat and demographic changes for species using detailed information provided in free-form textual descriptions of conservation status. Importantly, this key applies equally to any taxon and can be used where quantitative trend data for threats or demography is sparse. We scored the threat and demographic status of 37 species recently recommended for reclassification under the Endangered Species Act by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) and 15 control (not recommended for reclassification) species. We then compared the threat and demographic status scores to two metrics that FWS uses for their decision-making and reports to Congress: the reclassification recommendation and the recovery priority numbers (RPNs). While the metrics reported by FWS are often consistent with our scores for 52 species analyzed, our analyses highlight two problems with the oversimplified metrics. First, we show that both metrics can mask underlying demographic declines or threat increases; for example, ~40% of species not recommended for reclassification had changes in threats or demography. Second, we show that neither metric is consistent with either threats or demography alone, but conflates the two. We propose that large conservation programs, such as FWS’s Endangered Species program, adopt our simple scoring system for threats and demography. By doing so, program administrators will have better information to monitor program effectiveness and guide their decisions.

Download Full-text

A simple, sufficient, and consistent method to score the status of threats and demography of imperiled species

10.7287/peerj.preprints.1860v2 ◽

2016 ◽

Author(s):

Jacob W Malcom ◽

Whitney M Webber ◽

Ya-Wei Li

Keyword(s):

Wildlife Conservation ◽

Program Effectiveness ◽

Conservation Status ◽

Free Form ◽

Conservation Programs ◽

Program Administrators ◽

The Status ◽

Strategic Allocation ◽

The Cost ◽

Status Data

Managers of large, complex wildlife conservation programs need information on the conservation status of each of many species to help strategically allocate limited resources. Oversimplifying status data, however, runs the risk of missing information essential to strategic allocation. Conservation status consists of two components, the status of threats a species faces and the species’ demographic status. Neither component alone is sufficient to characterize conservation status. Here we present a simple key for scoring threat and demographic changes for species using detailed information provided in free-form textual descriptions of conservation status. This key is easy to use (simple), captures the two components of conservation status without the cost of more detailed measures (sufficient), and can be applied by different personnel to any taxon (consistent). To evaluate the key’s utility, we performed two analyses. First, we scored the threat and demographic status of 37 species recently recommended for reclassification under the Endangered Species Act (ESA) and 15 control species, then compared our scores to two metrics used for decision-making and reports to Congress. Second, we scored the threat and demographic status of all non-plant ESA-listed species from Florida (54 spp.), and evaluated scoring repeatability for a subset of those. While the metrics reported by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS) are often consistent with our scores in the first analysis, the results highlight two problems with the oversimplified metrics. First, we show that both metrics can mask underlying demographic declines or threat increases; for example, ~40% of species not recommended for reclassification had changes in threats or demography. Second, we show that neither metric is consistent with either threats or demography alone, but conflates the two. The second analysis illustrates how the scoring key can be applied to a substantial set of species to understand overall patterns of ESA implementation. The scoring repeatability analysis shows promise, but indicates thorough training will be needed to ensure consistency. We propose that large conservation programs adopt our simple scoring system for threats and demography. By doing so, program administrators will have better information to monitor program effectiveness and guide their decisions.

Download Full-text

Developing an Evidence-Based Coexistence Strategy to Promote Human and Wildlife Health in a Biodiverse Agroforest Landscape

Frontiers in Conservation Science ◽

10.3389/fcosc.2021.735367 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 2 ◽

Author(s):

Elena Bersacola ◽

Hannah Parathian ◽

Amélia Frazão-Moreira ◽

Maimuna Jaló ◽

Américo Sanhá ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Knowledge Base ◽

Wildlife Conservation ◽

One Health ◽

Health Knowledge ◽

Critical Role ◽

Management Plan ◽

Theory Of Change ◽

Evidence Based ◽

Health Campaign ◽

Causal Pathway

Agroforest mosaics represent one of the most extensive human-impacted terrestrial systems worldwide and play an increasingly critical role in wildlife conservation. In such dynamic shared landscapes, coexistence can be compromised if people view wildlife as a source of infectious disease. A cross-disciplinary One Health knowledge base can help to identify evolving proponents and threats to sustainable coexistence and establish long-term project goals. Building on an existing knowledge base of human–wildlife interactions at Cantanhez National Park (NP), Guinea-Bissau, we developed a causal pathway Theory-of-Change approach in response to a newly identified disease threat of leprosy in the Critically Endangered western chimpanzee (Pan troglodytes verus). The goals of our project are to improve knowledge and surveillance of leprosy in humans and wildlife and increase capacity to manage human–wildlife interactions. We describe the core project activities that aim to (1) quantify space use by chimpanzees across Cantanhez NP and determine the distribution of leprosy in chimpanzees; (2) understand the health system and local perceptions of disease; and (3) identify fine-scale risk sites through participatory mapping of resources shared by humans and chimpanzees across target villages. We discuss the development of a biodiversity and health monitoring programme, an evidence-based One Health campaign, and a One Health environmental management plan that incorporates the sharing of space and resources, and the disease implications of human–non-human great ape interactions. We demonstrate the importance of multi-stakeholder engagement, and the development of strategy that fully considers interactions between people, wildlife, and the environment.

Download Full-text