scholarly journals Infection byParorchis acanthus(Trematoda) decreases grazing by the keystone gastropod,Littoraria irrorata

PeerJ ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. e4544 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph P. Morton
Keyword(s):  
Salt Marsh ◽  
Host Species ◽  
Parasite Prevalence ◽  
Digenetic Trematode ◽  
Ecosystem Stability ◽  
Grazing Behavior ◽  
Littoraria Irrorata ◽  
Ecological Influence ◽  
Parorchis Acanthus

Parasites are well-known to alter the behavior of their hosts, but there is still a paucity of knowledge about how parasites modify the behavior of many ecologically influential host species. I studied the keystone grazer, the salt marsh periwinkle(Littoraria irrorata),to determine the influence of infection by the digenetic trematode,Parorchis acanthus,on its grazing behavior. Comparative laboratory grazing studies of wild-collected and experimentally infected snails revealed thatParorchisdecreased grazing on liveSpartinaby more than 80%. Because of the large ecological influence ofLittorariain southern U.S. marshes, parasite modification of snail grazing may have ramifications for marsh ecosystem stability if parasite prevalence is sufficiently high.

scholarly journals Host species, and not environment, predicts variation in blood parasite prevalence, distribution, and diversity along a humidity gradient in northern South America

2018 ◽  
Vol 8 (8) ◽  
pp. 3800-3814 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paulo C. Pulgarín-R ◽  
Juan P. Gómez ◽  
Scott Robinson ◽  
Robert E. Ricklefs ◽  
Carlos Daniel Cadena
Keyword(s):  
South America ◽  
Host Species ◽  
Parasite Prevalence ◽  
Blood Parasite ◽  
Humidity Gradient ◽  
Northern South America

Recovery of the salt marsh periwinkle (Littoraria irrorata) 9 years after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill: Size matters

2020 ◽  
Vol 160 ◽  
pp. 111581 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald R. Deis ◽  
John W. Fleeger ◽  
David S. Johnson ◽  
Irving A. Mendelssohn ◽  
Qianxin Lin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Salt Marsh ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Deepwater Horizon ◽  
Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill ◽  
Littoraria Irrorata

Plasmodium prevalence across avian host species is positively associated with exposure to mosquito vectors

Parasitology ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 142 (13) ◽  
pp. 1612-1620 ◽  
Author(s):  
MATTHEW C. I. MEDEIROS ◽  
ROBERT E. RICKLEFS ◽  
JEFFREY D. BRAWN ◽  
GABRIEL L. HAMER
Keyword(s):  
Host Species ◽  
Avian Malaria ◽  
Empirical Studies ◽  
Relative Number ◽  
Parasite Prevalence ◽  
Species Traits ◽  
Malaria Vectors ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Avian Host ◽  
Vector Borne

SUMMARYThe prevalence of vector-borne parasites varies greatly across host species, and this heterogeneity has been used to relate infectious disease susceptibility to host species traits. However, a few empirical studies have directly associated vector-borne parasite prevalence with exposure to vectors across hosts. Here, we use DNA sequencing of blood meals to estimate utilization of different avian host species by Culex mosquitoes, and relate utilization by these malaria vectors to avian Plasmodium prevalence. We found that avian host species that are highly utilized as hosts by avian malaria vectors are significantly more likely to have Plasmodium infections. However, the effect was not consistent among individual Plasmodium taxa. Exposure to vector bites may therefore influence the relative number of all avian Plasmodium infections among host species, while other processes, such as parasite competition and host-parasite coevolution, delimit the host distributions of individual Plasmodium species. We demonstrate that links between avian malaria susceptibility and host traits can be conditioned by patterns of exposure to vectors. Linking vector utilization rates to host traits may be a key area of future research to understand mechanisms that produce variation in the prevalence of vector-borne pathogens among host species.

Salt Marsh Remediation and the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, the Role of Planting in Vegetation and Macroinvertebrate Recovery

2014 ◽  
Vol 2014 (1) ◽  
pp. 1985-1999 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Zengel ◽  
Nicolle Rutherford ◽  
Brittany Bernik ◽  
Zachary Nixon ◽  
Jacqueline Michel
Keyword(s):  
Salt Marsh ◽  
Spartina Alterniflora ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Salt Marshes ◽  
Mechanical Treatment ◽  
Reference Conditions ◽  
Deepwater Horizon ◽  
Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill ◽  
Littoraria Irrorata ◽  
Barataria Bay

ABSTRACT The Deepwater Horizon oil spill resulted in persistent heavy oiling in salt marshes, particularly in northern Barataria Bay, Louisiana. Oiling conditions and several ecological variables were compared among reference plots and three types of heavily oiled plots located along a continuous shoreline area in northern Barataria Bay: oiled control plots, mechanical treatment plots, and mechanical treatment plots coupled with vegetation planting (Spartina alterniflora). Data were collected more than three years following initial oiling and two years following cleanup treatments and planting. Salt marsh oiling and associated impacts were apparent across all oiling/treatment classes relative to reference conditions. Mechanical treatment with planting showed the most improvement in oiling conditions and was also effective in re-establishing vegetation cover and plant species composition similar to reference conditions, in contrast to the oiled controls and mechanical treatment plots without planting. Marsh periwinkle (Littoraria irrorata) recovery was limited across all oiling/treatment classes relative to reference. Impacts to fiddler crabs (Uca spp.) were also documented in the heavily oiled plots. Positive influences of mechanical treatment and planting on macroinvertebrate recovery were observed; however, invertebrate recovery may lag the return of Spartina alterniflora by several years. Vegetation planting should be considered as a spill response and emergency restoration option for heavily oiled salt marshes where vegetation impacts are substantial, natural recovery may be lacking or delayed, intensive cleanup treatments are used, or where marsh shorelines are at risk of erosion.

scholarly journals Impacts of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill on Salt Marsh Periwinkles (Littoraria irrorata)

2016 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 643-652 ◽  
Author(s):  
Scott Zengel ◽  
Clay L. Montague ◽  
Steven C. Pennings ◽  
Sean P. Powers ◽  
Marla Steinhoff ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Salt Marsh ◽  
Oil Spill ◽  
Deepwater Horizon ◽  
Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill ◽  
Littoraria Irrorata

scholarly journals Parasites in Spanish populations of Psammodromus algirus (Algerian sand lizard, lagartija colilarga) and Psammodromus occidentalis (Western sand lizard, lagarto de arena occidental) (Squamata, Lacertidae, Gallotiinae)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stephen D Busack ◽  
CHARLES R. BURSEY ◽  
Lance A Durden
Keyword(s):  
Host Species ◽  
Parasite Prevalence ◽  
Internal Parasites ◽  
Spanish Populations ◽  
Nematode Diversity ◽  
Psammodromus Algirus ◽  
Sand Lizard ◽  
Haemaphysalis Punctata

Psammodromus algirus from Madrid, Ávila, and Cádiz provinces, Spain, and P. occidentalis from Cádiz province were examined for the presence of external and internal parasites.  Among those parasites represented were: Ixodes inopinatus (Arthropoda, Arachnida, Acari, Ixodidae); Haemaphysalis punctata (Arthropoda, Arachnida, Acari, Ixodidae);  Skrjabinelazia cf. taurica (Nematoda, Secernentea, Ascaridida, Seuratidae); Spauligodon carbonelli (Nematoda: Secernentea, Oxyurida, Pharyngodonidae); Parapharyngodon psammodromi (Nematoda, Secernentea, Oxyurida, Pharyngodonidae); Abbreviata abbreviata (Nematoda,  Secernentea, Physalopteroidea, Physalopteridae); Mesocestoides sp. (Platyhelminthes, Cestoda, Cyclophyllidea, Mesocestoididae); and Oochoristica cf. tuberculata (Platyhelminthes, Cestoda,  Cyclophyllidea, Davaineidae). Details regarding localities from which host species were collected, numbers of parasites and sites of attachment, and estimates of prevalence and intensities of infection are presented. Nematode diversity, along with parasite prevalence, parasitaemia, and relationship to elevation are also discussed. A table of Psammodromus parasites in Spain is also included.

Responses of Salt Marsh Plant Rhizosphere Diazotroph Assemblages to Changes in Marsh Elevation, Edaphic Conditions and Plant Host Species

2010 ◽  
Vol 61 (2) ◽  
pp. 386-398 ◽  
Author(s):  
Debra A. Davis ◽  
Megan D. Gamble ◽  
Christopher E. Bagwell ◽  
Peter W. Bergholz ◽  
Charles R. Lovell
Keyword(s):  
Salt Marsh ◽  
Host Species ◽  
Marsh Plant ◽  
Plant Host ◽  
Salt Marsh Plant ◽  
Edaphic Conditions ◽  
Marsh Elevation

scholarly journals Host-parasite interaction explains variation in prevalence of avian haemosporidians at the community level

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Garcia-Longoria ◽  
A. Marzal ◽  
F. de Lope ◽  
L. Z. Garamszegi
Keyword(s):  
Host Species ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Bird Community ◽  
Parasite Prevalence ◽  
Host Community ◽  
Dual Nature ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Avian Haemosporidians ◽  
Host Parasite

ABSTRACTParasites are a selective force that shape host community structure and dynamics, but host communities can also influence parasitism. Understanding the dual nature from host-parasite interactions can be facilitated by quantifying the variation in parasite prevalence (i.e. the proportion of infected host individuals in a population) among host species and then comparing that variation to other ecological factors that are known to also shape host communities. Avian haemosporidian parasites (e.g. Plasmodium and Haemoproteus) are abundant and widespread representing an excellent model for the study of host-parasite interactions. Several geographic and environmental factors have been suggested to determine prevalence of avian haemosporidians in bird communities. However, much remains to be known regarding whether host and parasite traits, represented by phylogenetic distances among species and degree of specialization in host-parasite relationships, can influence parasite prevalence. The aims of this study were to analyze factors affecting prevalence in a bird community and to test whether the degree of parasite specialization on their hosts is determined by host traits. Our statistical analyses suggest that prevalence is mainly determined by the interaction between host species and parasite lineages where tolerance and/or susceptibility to parasites plays an essential role. Additionally, we found that although some of the parasite lineages infected a low number of bird species, the species they infected were distantly related and therefore the parasites themselves should not be considered typical host specialists. Prevalence was higher for generalist than for specialist parasites in some, but not all, host species. These results suggest that prevalence mainly results from the interaction between host immune defences and parasite exploitation strategies wherein the result of an association between particular parasite lineages and particular host species is idiosyncratic.

scholarly journals Effects of shoreline oiling on salt marsh epifaunal macroinvertebrates

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Donald R Deis ◽  
John W Fleeger ◽  
Stefan M Bourgoin ◽  
Irving A Mendelssohn ◽  
Qianxin Lin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Salt Marsh ◽  
Shell Length ◽  
Salt Marshes ◽  
Fiddler Crab ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Frequency Distributions ◽  
Littoraria Irrorata ◽  
Biological Responses ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
One Year

The Deepwater Horizon oil spill resulted in varying degrees of oiling in the salt marshes of northern Barataria Bay, Louisiana, USA. This study examines the effects of oiling intensity and recovery on two conspicuous marsh-platform macroinvertebrates, Uca spp., fiddler crabs, and Littoraria irrorata, the salt marsh periwinkle, from 2.5 to 4.5 years after the spill. The dominant fiddler crab within these marshes, Uca longisignalis, was the only species observed in field collections, and no significant difference in burrow density or burrow size was found among oiling levels over the study period indicating recovery from any negative effects of oiling already occurred for this species. The highest density of L. irrorata was found at moderately oiled sites compared to both reference (without visible oiling) and heavily oiled stations. Spartina alterniflora density recovered within two years after the spill at the moderately oiled stations facilitating recovery of L. irrorata approximately one year later. L. irrorata average shell length and length-frequency distributions were equivalent at moderately oiled and reference stations but snails were shorter at heavily oiled stations because of a greater proportion of subadults. Shell length data from the heavily oiled sites indicate that direct mortality due to oiling or oil-induced reductions in recruitment occurred in 2010 and that recovery was starting to occur at 48 months after the spill. The extent and duration of oil in the water during the spill and the biological responses we measured indicates that L. irrorata and Uca longisignalis were both affected in their ability to carry out their life cycle on the marsh and/or in the water column at all stations including the reference stations for some period following the entry of oil into the region.

Rapidly Entrainable Tidal Vertical Migrations in the Salt Marsh Snail Littoraria irrorata

Estuaries ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 24 (6) ◽  
pp. 808 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kevin A. Hovel ◽  
Aaron Bartholomew ◽  
Romuald N. Lipcius
Keyword(s):  
Salt Marsh ◽  
Littoraria Irrorata
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