TY - JOUR
T1 - The Prevalence of the Raccoon Roundworm, Baylisascaris procyonis, in Allegheny Woodrat Habitat in the Mid-Atlantic Region, U.S.A.
AU - Wolfkill, Jordan
AU - Bejarano, Maria Elena
AU - Serfass, Thomas L.
AU - Turner, Greg
AU - Brosi, Sunshine
AU - Feller, Daniel
AU - Mahan, Carolyn G.
N1 - Funding Information:
Acknowledgments.—We thank the Pennsylvania Game Commission for field work assistance. Research was funded by a Northeast Association of Fish and Wildlife Agencies Regional Conservation Needs grant awarded to Sunshine Brosi, Frostburg State University. Undergraduate stipends for parasite work also were provided by the Pennsylvania State University, Altoona College. Lisa Emili, Pennsylvania State University, assisted with manuscript preparation. We also thank anonymous reviewers for their comments which greatly improved our manuscript.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 University of Notre Dame. All rights reserved.
PY - 2021/1/1
Y1 - 2021/1/1
N2 - Baylisacaris procyonis is a roundworm that is tolerated by its primary host, raccoons (Procyon lotor). However, this roundworm can be fatal to intermediate mammalian hosts and may be a contributing factor to population declines of the endangered, Allegheny woodrat (Neotoma magister). We used fecal flotation to determine the prevalence of B. procyonis eggs in raccoon scat found in locations that overlap with where woodrats persist in the mid-Atlantic. We determined that B. procyonis was present at two extant woodrat colonies in Maryland and Pennsylvania. We expect woodrat populations at these sites to decline, if the roundworm and other factors (e.g., forest fragmentation) are not alleviated.
AB - Baylisacaris procyonis is a roundworm that is tolerated by its primary host, raccoons (Procyon lotor). However, this roundworm can be fatal to intermediate mammalian hosts and may be a contributing factor to population declines of the endangered, Allegheny woodrat (Neotoma magister). We used fecal flotation to determine the prevalence of B. procyonis eggs in raccoon scat found in locations that overlap with where woodrats persist in the mid-Atlantic. We determined that B. procyonis was present at two extant woodrat colonies in Maryland and Pennsylvania. We expect woodrat populations at these sites to decline, if the roundworm and other factors (e.g., forest fragmentation) are not alleviated.
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U2 - 10.1637/0003-0031-185.1.145
DO - 10.1637/0003-0031-185.1.145
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85099371329
SN - 0003-0031
VL - 185
SP - 145
EP - 147
JO - American Midland Naturalist
JF - American Midland Naturalist
IS - 1
ER -