Effects of goldfish (Carassius auratus) population size and body condition on the transmission of Gyrodactylus kobayashii (Monogenea)

Parasitology ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 144 (9) ◽  
pp. 1221-1228 ◽  
Author(s):  
SHUN ZHOU ◽  
HONG ZOU ◽  
SHAN G. WU ◽  
GUI T. WANG ◽  
DAVID J. MARCOGLIESE ◽  
...  

SUMMARYField surveys indicate that host population size, rather than density, is the most important determinant of monogenean infection dynamics. To verify this prediction, epidemic parameters were monitored for 70 days at five host population sizes held at constant density using a goldfish – Gyrodactylus kobayashii laboratory model. During the first 20 days, the rate of increase of prevalence and mean abundance was faster in small host populations. Total mean prevalence and total mean abundance throughout the experiment were not significantly affected by host population sizes. Higher transmission rates were detected in larger host populations. However, there were no significant differences in effective contact rates among the five host populations on each sampling day during the first 20 days, implying that contact rates may be saturated at a sufficiently high host density. These results demonstrate that the epidemic occurs more quickly in smaller host populations at the beginning of the experiment. However, the epidemic is independent of the host population size due to the similar effective contact rates in the five population sizes. Significant negative influence of the initial body condition (Kn) of uninfected goldfish on total mean abundance of parasites suggests that susceptibility of hosts is also a determinant of parasite transmission.

Parasitology ◽  
2004 ◽  
Vol 129 (5) ◽  
pp. 635-642 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. T. VALTONEN ◽  
E. HELLE ◽  
R. POULIN

In theory there should be a strong coupling between host and parasite population sizes. Here, we investigated population size and structure in 3 species of acanthocephalans, Corynosoma semerme, C. strumosum and C. magdaleni, in ringed seals (Phoca hispida) from the Bothnian Bay over a period of more than 20 years. During this period, seal numbers first decreased markedly and then increased steadily; at the same time, a paratenic fish host particularly important for C. strumosum has gradually disappeared from the bay due to decreasing salinity. We found no evidence that the mean abundance of any of the 3 acanthocephalan species changed significantly over time, nor was there any relationship between parasite abundance at any point in time and seal numbers in the corresponding year. Based on the proportion of sexually mature female worms per infrapopulation, and on relationships between the sex ratio of worms and infrapopulation size, both C. magdaleni and C. semerme appear to be doing well, independently of the population size of their seal definitive hosts. In contrast, perhaps because of the loss of its main paratenic host, C. strumosum appears more at risk in the Bothnian Bay. Our results show that in complex natural systems, there are not necessarily simple, direct links between definitive host population size or density, and parasite population dynamics.


2021 ◽  
Vol 288 (1965) ◽  
Author(s):  
Andrei Papkou ◽  
Rebecca Schalkowski ◽  
Mike-Christoph Barg ◽  
Svenja Koepper ◽  
Hinrich Schulenburg

Ongoing host–pathogen interactions are characterized by rapid coevolutionary changes forcing species to continuously adapt to each other. The interacting species are often defined by finite population sizes. In theory, finite population size limits genetic diversity and compromises the efficiency of selection owing to genetic drift, in turn constraining any rapid coevolutionary responses. To date, however, experimental evidence for such constraints is scarce. The aim of our study was to assess to what extent population size influences the dynamics of host–pathogen coevolution. We used Caenorhabditus elegans and its pathogen Bacillus thuringiensis as a model for experimental coevolution in small and large host populations, as well as in host populations which were periodically forced through a bottleneck. By carefully controlling host population size for 23 host generations, we found that host adaptation was constrained in small populations and to a lesser extent in the bottlenecked populations. As a result, coevolution in large and small populations gave rise to different selection dynamics and produced different patterns of host–pathogen genotype-by-genotype interactions. Our results demonstrate a major influence of host population size on the ability of the antagonists to co-adapt to each other, thereby shaping the dynamics of antagonistic coevolution.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manuel A. Acuña-Zegarra ◽  
Mayra Núñez-López ◽  
Andreu Comas-García ◽  
Mario Santana-Cibrian ◽  
Jorge X. Velasco-Hernández

AbstractThe interaction and possibly interference between viruses infecting a common host population is the problem addressed in this work. We model two viral diseases both of the SIRS type that have similar mechanism of transmission and for which a vaccine exists. The vaccine is characterized by its coverage, induced temporal immunity and efficacy. The population dynamics of both diseases considers infected individuals of each disease and hosts that are susceptible to one but have recovered from the other. We do not incorporate coinfection. We postulate two main transmission factors affecting the effective contact rates: i) that the virus with higher reproduction number can superinfect the one with lower reproduction number and ii) that there is some protection induced by vaccination against the weaker virus that reduces the probability of infection by the stronger virus. Our results indicate that coexistence of the viruses is possible in the long term. The time-dependent effective contact rate may induce either alternating outbreaks of each disease or synchronous outbreaks. We also found the existence of bi-stability triggered by a backward bifurcation, conducive to scenarios where, at the population level, vaccine application may promote persistence of both diseases provided the effective coverage and vaccine efficacy are low.


2013 ◽  
Vol 91 (7) ◽  
pp. 473-479 ◽  
Author(s):  
M. Pachkowski ◽  
S.D. Côté ◽  
M. Festa-Bianchet

In many ungulates, female fecundity is affected by body condition and has important effects on population dynamics. In some species, females adopt a conservative strategy, reducing reproductive effort when population density is high. We investigated what factors affect the probability of gestation in adult female caribou (Rangifer tarandus (L., 1758)) from the Rivière-George herd in northern Quebec and Labrador over 5 years that spanned various population sizes and trends. Similar to other populations of migratory caribou, the probability that a female was pregnant in spring increased with body mass and percent body fat. The probability of gestation appeared to be reduced by high infestation of warbles (Hypoderma tarandi (L., 1758)). The proportion of females pregnant varied between years and was lower at high population size. Females of similar mass, however, were pregnant regardless of whether the population was increasing at low density, had reached a peak, or was declining. Compared with other ungulates that reduce maternal expenditure at high density, female caribou of the Rivière-George herd may have a risk-prone reproductive strategy.


The Condor ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 102 (2) ◽  
pp. 385-391 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frank F. Rivera-MilÁn ◽  
Myrna VÁzquez

Abstract We conducted a capture-recapture study of Zenaida Doves (Zenaida aurita) in three neighboring dairy farms in eastcentral Puerto Rico during 1984–1997. During 46 sampling periods, mean survival rate per sampling period was 0.77 (range = 0.1–1.0), mean recruitment was 911 individuals (range = 182–5,124), and mean population size was 1,569 individuals (range = 233–7,354). Survival increased during 1984–1991 and decreased during 1992–1997. Recruitment did not show a trend, but population size increased during 1984–1997. Rate of increase was a curvilinear decreasing function of population size. A demographic model with a fixed mortality rate stabilized at 1,350 individuals. When mortality rate was defined as a normal random variable, mean population size was 1,421 individuals, and there was a 0.95 probability of observing population sizes from 467 to 2,375 individuals. The size of the Zenaida Dove population varied widely over time, but periods of high recruitment rapidly offset periods of low survival in the dairy farms.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abeysinghe Mudiyanselage Prabodha Sammani ◽  
Dissanayaka Mudiyanselage Saman Kumara Dissanayaka ◽  
Leanage Kanaka Wolly Wijayaratne ◽  
William Robert Morrison

Abstract The almond moth Cadra cautella (Walker), a key pest of storage facilities, is difficult to manage using synthetic chemicals. Pheromone-based management methods remain a high priority due to advantages over conventional management practices, which typically use insecticides. Cadra cautella females release a blend of pheromone including (Z, E)-9,12-tetradecadienyl acetate (ZETA) and (Z)-9-tetradecadien-1-yl acetate (ZTA). The effect of these components on mating of C. cautella and how response varies with the population density and sex ratio remain unknown. In this study, the mating status of C. cautella was studied inside mating cages under different ratios of ZETA and ZTA diluted in hexane and at different population sizes either with equal or unequal sex ratio. The lowest percentage of mated females (highest mating disruption [MD] effects), corresponding to roughly 12.5%, was produced by a 5:1 and 3.3:1 ratio of ZETA:ZTA. Populations with equal sex ratio showed the lowest percentage of mated females, at 20% and 12.5% under lower and higher density, respectively. The next lowest percentage of mated females was produced when the sex ratio was set to 1: 2 and 2:1 male:female, with just 25% and 22.5% of moths mated, respectively. This study shows that mating status of C. cautella is influenced by ZETA:ZTA ratio, sex ratio, and population size. This current knowledge would have useful implications for mating disruption programs.


Genetics ◽  
1973 ◽  
Vol 73 (3) ◽  
pp. 513-530
Author(s):  
J P Hanrahan ◽  
E J Eisen ◽  
J E Legates

ABSTRACT The effects of population size and selection intensity on the mean response was examined after 14 generations of within full-sib family selection for postweaning gain in mice. Population sizes of 1, 2, 4, 8 and 16 pair matings were each evaluated at selection intensities of 100% (control), 50% and 25% in a replicated experiment. Selection response per generation increased as selection intensity increased. Selection response and realized heritability tended to increase with increasing population size. Replicate variability in realized heritability was large at population sizes of 1, 2 and 4 pairs. Genetic drift was implicated as the primary factor causing the reduced response and lowered repeatability at the smaller population sizes. Lines with intended effective population sizes of 62 yielded larger selection responses per unit selection differential than lines with effective population sizes of 30 or less.


1963 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. E. Paloheimo

Techniques of estimating population size, level of fishing, and the degree of dependence of fishing success on environmental factors are examined on the basis of tagging, catch and effort data. A new method is developed to estimate population size from catch, effort, and temperature data when the catchability varies with temperature.The methods of estimation discussed are applied to data collected from a number of lobster fisheries on Canada's Atlantic coast. Analysis confirms a relationship between the catchability of lobsters and bottom temperature. Differences in this relationship are found between areas and between tagged and untagged lobsters within areas. It is suggested that these differences are attributable to the differences in densities as well as to aggregations of lobsters and fishing. The effect of these aggregations on population size estimates is considered.Calculated average catchabilities at comparable temperatures are different for different areas. These differences are correlated with the numbers of trap hauls per day per square miles fished. It is suggested that the differences in the catchabilities might be due to interactions between units of gear not predicted by the customary relationship between catch and effort.


2012 ◽  
Vol 90 (9) ◽  
pp. 1149-1160 ◽  
Author(s):  
J.C. Winternitz ◽  
M.J. Yabsley ◽  
S.M. Altizer

Parasites can both influence and be affected by host population dynamics, and a growing number of case studies support a role for parasites in causing or amplifying host population cycles. In this study, we examined individual and population predictors of gastrointestinal parasitism on wild cyclic montane voles ( Microtus montanus (Peale, 1848)) to determine if evidence was consistent with theory implicating parasites in population cycles. We sampled three sites in central Colorado for the duration of a multiannual cycle and recorded the prevalence and intensity of directly transmitted Eimeria Schneider, 1875 and indirectly transmitted cestodes from a total of 267 voles. We found significant associations between host infection status, individual traits (sex, age, and reproductive status) and population variables (site, trapping period, and population density), including a positive association between host density and cestode prevalence, and a negative association between host density and Eimeria prevalence. Both cestode and Eimeria intensity correlated positively with host age, reproductive status, and population density, but neither parasite was associated with poorer host condition. Our findings suggest that parasites are common in this natural host, but determining their potential to influence montane vole cycles requires future experimental studies and long-term monitoring to determine the fitness consequences of infection and the impact of parasite removal on host dynamics.


2008 ◽  
Vol 11 (03) ◽  
pp. 357-369 ◽  
Author(s):  
SØREN WICHMANN ◽  
DIETRICH STAUFFER ◽  
CHRISTIAN SCHULZE ◽  
ERIC W. HOLMAN

An earlier study [24] concluded, based on computer simulations and some inferences from empirical data, that languages will change the more slowly the larger the population gets. We replicate this study using a more complete language model for simulations (the Schulze model combined with a Barabási–Albert network) and a richer empirical dataset [12]. Our simulations show either a negligible or a strong dependence of language change on population sizes, depending on the parameter settings; while empirical data, like some of the simulations, show a negligible dependence.


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