Pets becoming established in the wild: free–living Vietnamese potbellied pigs in Spain

Vietnamese potbellied (VPB) pigs (Sus scrofa) are a common pet in North America and Europe, but their recent decrease in popularity has increased their abandonment. Our main aim was to identify potential cases of free–living VPB pigs in Spain through an in–depth Google search. We identified 42 cases of free–living VPB pigs distributed throughout the country. The number of free–living VPB pigs reported increased by year but the species abundance still seems to be low. Signs of VPB pig reproduction and possible hybrids between VPB pigs and wild boar or feral pigs have been also reported. Free–living VPB pigs could erode the gene pool of the Spanish wild boar population and exacerbate the damage (e.g. crop damage or spread of diseases) already caused by wild board. Urgent evaluation and adequate management of wild VPB pig sightings is needed to prevent their establishment in natural habitats.

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Impact of forest management on wild boar (Sus scrofa) population in south Lithuania

Biologija ◽

10.6001/biologija.v66i2.4254 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 66 (2) ◽

Author(s):

Tomas Barkauskas ◽

Loreta Griciuvienė ◽

Olgirda Belova ◽

Nomeda Bratčikovienė

Keyword(s):

Forest Management ◽

Wild Boar ◽

Sus Scrofa ◽

Pine Forest ◽

Wild Boar Population ◽

Negative Effects ◽

In The Wild

We assessed the effect of the investigated felling types on the abundance of the wild boar population in south Lithuania. The study was carried out in the southern part of Prienai forest, Punia pine forest, and Kalviai forest, all located in southern Lithuania. The data on the number of the wild boar population and the hunting dynamics were gathered from six hunting seasons, from 2008 to 2014. Our results highlighted that some types of felling had negative effects on the density of the wild boar population in south Lithuania. We observed that changes in the wild boar population were not only affected by the felling of the current year, but also by that of the previous year. Further analysis of data collected over a larger area is needed to check these findings.

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Genetic diversity of the Central European wild boar (Sus scrofa scrofa) population and domestic pig (Sus scrofa domesticus) breeds based on a microsatellite DNA locus

Vavilov Journal of Genetics and Breeding ◽

10.18699/vj21.095 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 25 (8) ◽

pp. 822-830

Author(s):

E. A. Snegin ◽

V. M. Makeeva ◽

A. P. Kaledin ◽

A. M. Ostapchuk ◽

I. D. Alazneli ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Wild Boar ◽

Sus Scrofa ◽

Shannon Index ◽

Effective Size ◽

Wild Boar Population ◽

Large White ◽

Central European ◽

Principal Coordinates ◽

European Wild Boar ◽

In The Wild

The results of studies of the genetic structure of the Central European wild boar (Sus scrofa scrofa) population and four breeds of domestic pigs (Duroc, Yorkshire, Large White and Landrace) bred in the Central Black Earth region of Russia are presented in this work. Based on 12 microsatellite loci, a significant ( p <0.05) decrease in the level of genetic variability in bred breeds was shown. The expected heterozygosity and Shannon index were as follows: in the wild boar, Ho = 0.763 ± 0.026, I = 1.717 ± 0.091; in the Duroc breed, Ho = 0.569 ± 0.068, I = 1.191 ± 0.157; in the Landrace, Ho = 0.618 ± 0.062, I = 1.201 ± 0.147; in the Large White, Ho = 0.680 ± 0.029, I = 1.362 ± 0.074; and in the Yorkshire, Ho = 0.642 ± 0.065, I = 1.287 ± 0.156. The results of checking genotypic Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium based on the G-test of maximum likelihood demonstrated that the overwhelming majority of loci in the wild boar population were in the state of said equilibrium. By contrast, in pig breed populations, some loci demonstrated a significant deviation from the indicated equilibrium. In addition, the Yorkshire, Large White, and Landrace populations had loci, for which the hypothesis of neutrality was reliably rejected based on the results of the Ewens–Watterson test. The revealed private alleles, characteristic of the wild boar and breeds, can later be used to identify them. The ordination of the centroids of different herds in the space of the first two principal coordinates based on the matrix of pairwise estimates of Nei’s genetic distances showed that the most distant populations are the Duroc and Boar breeds, and the most genetically close are the Yorkshire and Landrace breeds. The closest to the wild boar population was the Large White breed. The assessment of the effective size, carried out using the method based on the linkage disequilibrium and the molecular coancestry method, showed that in all studied groups, including the wild boar population, the effective size was less than 100 individuals. The low effective size of the wild boar population (Ne = 21.8, Neb = 4.0) is probably caused by the death and shooting of animals due to Pestis africana suum.

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Seroprevalance of Trichinella spp. in wild boars (Sus scrofa) from Bihor county, western Romania

Helminthologia ◽

10.2478/helm-2020-0032 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 57 (3) ◽

pp. 235-240

Author(s):

Z. Boros ◽

I. Vallée ◽

L. C. Panait ◽

C. M. Gherman ◽

A. Chevillot ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Western Blot ◽

Wild Boar ◽

Sus Scrofa ◽

Plasma Samples ◽

Wild Boar Population ◽

Wild Boars ◽

Wide Geographical Distribution ◽

Artificial Digestion ◽

In The Wild ◽

Western Romania

SummaryThe wild boar (Sus scrofa) has a wide geographical distribution and can be an important source of Trichinella spp. infection in humans in Romania.The objective of this study was to identify the presence of Trichinella spp. in the wild boar population in Bihor County, Romania.Eighty four plasma and diaphragm samples, collected from wild boars, were included in this study. Artificial digestion, ELISA and Western blot were performed on these specimens. All diaphragm samples were negative for Trichinella larvae in artificial digestion, while in ELISA, 54 (64.2 %) plasma samples were positive and 6 (7.1 %) plasma samples were doubtful. Western blot was performed on 26 plasma samples from which only 6 (23.0 %) gave a positive result.Serological evidences indicate the presence of Trichinella spp. in wild boars from western Romania. Therefore, human consumers might be at risk to ingest Trichinella larvae, even in low numbers.

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Prevalence and Antimicrobial Resistances of Salmonella spp. Isolated from Wild Boars in Liguria Region, Italy

Pathogens ◽

10.3390/pathogens10050568 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (5) ◽

pp. 568

Author(s):

Elisabetta Razzuoli ◽

Valeria Listorti ◽

Isabella Martini ◽

Laura Migone ◽

Lucia Decastelli ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Antimicrobial Resistance ◽

Wild Boar ◽

Antimicrobial Susceptibility ◽

Potential Risk ◽

Salmonella Enterica ◽

Intestinal Tract ◽

Wild Boar Population ◽

Salmonella Spp ◽

Wild Boars ◽

In The Wild

Salmonella spp. is an important zoonotic agent. Wild boars might host this pathogen in the intestinal tract and might represent a risk for Salmonella spp. transmission to humans. Wild boars are widely spread in Liguria, due to the environmental characteristics of the region. The aim of the study was the isolation, typing, and investigation of antimicrobial susceptibility of the isolated strains of Salmonella spp. During the 2013–2017 hunting seasons, 4335 livers of wild boars were collected and analyzed for the presence of Salmonella spp. A total of 260 strains of Salmonella spp. were isolated and characterized, with a prevalence of 6%. The isolated strains belonged to all six Salmonella enterica subspecies. Most of them were identified as Salmonella enterica subs. enterica of which 31 different serotypes were identified. The dominating serotype identified was S. Enteritidis. The antimicrobial resistance profiles of the isolated strains were analyzed against sixteen molecules. Of the isolated strains, 94.6% were resistant to at least one of the tested antimicrobials. This study showed the circulation of resistant Salmonella spp. strains in the wild boar population living in this area of Italy, underling the potential risk for these animals to disseminate this pathogen and its antimicrobial resistances.

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First Report of Echinococcus ortleppi in Free-Living Wild Boar (Sus scrofa) from Portugal

Microorganisms ◽

10.3390/microorganisms9061256 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 9 (6) ◽

pp. 1256

Author(s):

Teresa Letra Mateus ◽

Maria João Gargaté ◽

Anabela Vilares ◽

Idalina Ferreira ◽

Manuela Rodrigues ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Wild Boar ◽

Internal Transcribed Spacer ◽

Sus Scrofa ◽

One Health ◽

Control Strategies ◽

Free Living ◽

First Report ◽

Wildlife Reservoirs ◽

First Time ◽

Echinococcus Granulosus Sensu Lato

Cystic echinococcosis (CE) is a zoonosis that is prevalent worldwide. It is considered endemic in Portugal but few studies have been performed on Echinococcus granulosus sensu lato and their hosts. In this study, CE cysts are reported for the first time in a free-living wild boar (Sus scrofa) in Portugal. The presence of the metacestodes in the liver of the wild boar was identified by morphological features, microscopic examination and molecular analysis. The sequencing of part of the DNA nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer-1 (ITS-1) region revealed a G5 genotype that presently corresponds to Echinococcus ortleppi. This is the first report of E. ortleppi in Portugal and to the best of the authors’ knowledge, in Europe. These results suggest that wild boar may be a host of CE, namely, crossing the livestock–wildlife interface, which has important public health implications. Wildlife reservoirs must be taken into account as CE hosts and surveillance of game as well as health education for hunters should be implemented using a One Health approach, with implementation of feasible and tailor-made control strategies, namely, proper elimination of byproducts in the field.

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Possible genetic sources of free-living Wild Boar (Sus scrofa) in southern England

Mammal Review ◽

10.1111/j.1365-2907.2001.00086.x ◽

2008 ◽

Vol 31 (3-4) ◽

pp. 245-248

Author(s):

Martin J. Goulding

Keyword(s):

Wild Boar ◽

Sus Scrofa ◽

Free Living ◽

Southern England

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Wild boar (Sus scrofa) as a possible vector of mycobacterial infections: review of literature and critical analysis of data from Central Europe between 1983 to 2001

Veterinární Medicína ◽

10.17221/5750-vetmed ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 48 (No. 3) ◽

pp. 51-65 ◽

Cited By ~ 33

Author(s):

M. Machackova ◽

L. Matlová ◽

J. Lamka ◽

J. Smolík ◽

IMelicharek ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Wild Boar ◽

Central Europe ◽

Cervus Elaphus ◽

Bovine Tuberculosis ◽

Sus Scrofa ◽

Hawaiian Island ◽

Brushtail Possum ◽

Mycobacterial Infections ◽

Control Programmes ◽

In The Wild

Infected animals in the wild, which can act as a reservoir and/or vector for the origin of bovine tuberculosis, are a great problem for national programmes seeking to free herds of cattle from the infection. The circulation of Mycobacterium bovis in the wild animal population might cause a slow-down in the progress of control programmes through the reinfection of herds of livestock. The Eurasian badger (Meles meles) and red deer (Cervus elaphus) living in the wild in Great Britain and Ireland, brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula), ferrets (Mustela putorius f. furo) in New Zealand and wild buffalo (Bubalus arnee) in Australia are among already known reservoirs and vectors of bovine tuberculosis. In 7 countries of Central Europe (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and Slovenia) bovine tuberculosis in ca􀄴le was controlled as part of national control programmes more than 20 years ago. In the last decade M. bovis has been diagnosed extremely sporadically in cattle and other domestic animals as well as in wild animals held in captivity or living in the wild. This favourable situation could be threatened by the mycobacteria spreading via the wild boar (Sus scrofa) which is susceptible to mycobacterial infection and very abundant in Central Europe. According to available literary data, mycobacteria were detected in 361 wild boar originating from countries other than those of Central Europe, such as Australia, Bulgaria, Germany, the Hawaiian island of Molokai, Italy and Spain. M. tuberculosis complex (33.9%) and M. bovis complex (39.8%) isolates were most frequently detected in the faeces and/or parenchymatous organs of wild boar. Of other mycobacterial species, M. intracellulare (3.8%), M. avium subsp. avium (3.8%), M. terrae (2.4%), M. fortuitum (2.2%), M. scrofulaceum (2.2%), M. gordonae (0.8%), M. simiae (0.5%), M. szulgai (0.5%), M. xenopi (0.5%), M. smegmatis (0.2%), M. vaccae (0.2%), fast-growing, further unspecified species (0.2%) and unidentified mycobacteria (8.8%) were isolated. Following the analysis of literary data and our own results, it was found that, in the area covered by the above-mentioned 7 countries of Central Europe, a total of 431 wild boar were examined for mycobacterial infections in the years 1983–2001. Tuberculous lesions in parenchymatous organs were found in 43 (10.0%) animals. M. bovis was identified in 22 (5.1%) animals, M. a. avium in 2 (0.4%), M. a. paratuberculosis in 1 (0.2%) animal and atypical mycobacteria in 27 (6.3%) animals. The wild boar may therefore represent, under certain unfavourable epizootiological conditions, a vector of some mycobacterial infections in not only animals, but also humans.

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