View article: Fear of the human “super predator” far exceeds the fear of large carnivores in a model mesocarnivore
Fear of the human “super predator” far exceeds the fear of large carnivores in a model mesocarnivore Open
The fear (perceived predation risk) large carnivores inspire in mesocarnivores can affect ecosystem structure and function, and loss of the "landscape of fear" large carnivores create adds to concerns regarding the worldwide loss of large …
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Molecular Survey on Vector-Borne Pathogens in Alpine Wild Carnivorans Open
In Europe, free-ranging wildlife has been linked to the emergence of several vector-borne diseases such as rodents for Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. In particular, wild carnivorans are one of the most important sources of emerging zoonotic pat…
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Combining genomics and epidemiology to analyse bi-directional transmission of Mycobacterium bovis in a multi-host system Open
Quantifying pathogen transmission in multi-host systems is difficult, as exemplified in bovine tuberculosis (bTB) systems, but is crucial for control. The agent of bTB, Mycobacterium bovis, persists in cattle populations worldwide, often w…
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Spatial Co-Occurrence and Activity Patterns of Mesocarnivores in the Temperate Forests of Southwest China Open
Understanding the interactions between species and their coexistence mechanisms will help explain biodiversity maintenance and enable managers to make sound conservation decisions. Mesocarnivores are abundant and diverse mid-sized carnivor…
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The application of statistical network models in disease research Open
Summary Host social structure is fundamental to how infections spread and persist, and so the statistical modelling of static and dynamic social networks provides an invaluable tool to parameterise realistic epidemiological models. We pres…
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Assessing effects from four years of industry-led badger culling in England on the incidence of bovine tuberculosis in cattle, 2013–2017 Open
The objective was to measure the association between badger culling and bovine tuberculosis (TB) incidents in cattle herds in three areas of England between 2013–2017 (Gloucestershire and Somerset) and 2015–2017 (Dorset). Farming industry-…
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Oral Vaccination of Free-Living Badgers (Meles meles) with Bacille Calmette Guérin (BCG) Vaccine Confers Protection against Tuberculosis Open
A field trial was conducted to investigate the impact of oral vaccination of free-living badgers against natural-transmitted Mycobacterium bovis infection. For a period of three years badgers were captured over seven sweeps in three zones …
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Factors affecting hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) attraction to rural villages in arable landscapes Open
Although residential areas are often unfavourable for wildlife, some species can take advantage of the available shelter and anthropogenic sources of food such as supplementary feeding. The European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus) is increa…
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Wildlife disease ecology from the individual to the population: Insights from a long‐term study of a naturally infected European badger population Open
Long‐term individual‐based datasets on host–pathogen systems are a rare and valuable resource for understanding the infectious disease dynamics in wildlife. A study of European badgers ( M eles meles ) naturally infected with bovine tuberc…
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Beyond Badger’s Rule: The Origins and Generality of the Structure–Spectra Relationship of Aqueous Hydrogen Bonds Open
The structure of hydrogen bonded networks is intimately intertwined with their dynamics. Despite the incredibly wide range of hydrogen bond strengths encountered in water clusters, ion-water clusters, and liquid water, we demonstrate that …
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Infection of Wildlife by Mycobacterium bovis in France Assessment Through a National Surveillance System, Sylvatub Open
Mycobacterium bovis infection was first described in free-ranging wildlife in France in 2001, with subsequent detection in hunter-harvested ungulates and badgers in areas where outbreaks of bovine tuberculosis (TB) were also detected in ca…
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Determination of the Cu(III)–OH Bond Distance by Resonance Raman Spectroscopy Using a Normalized Version of Badger’s Rule Open
The stretching frequency, ν(Cu-O), of the [CuOH]2+ core in the complexes LCuOH (L = N,N'-bis(2,6-diisopropyl-4-R-phenyl)pyridine-2,6-dicarboxamide, R = H or NO2, or N,N'-bis(2,6-diisopropylphenyl)-1-methylpiperidine-2,6-dicarboxamide) was …
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Recent history, current status, conservation and management of native mammalian carnivore species in Great Britain Open
After historical declines in population sizes and ranges, we compare and contrast the recent history and contemporary variation in the status of Great Britain's eight native mammalian carnivore species from the 1960s to 2017. Wildcat Felis…
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Badger: complexity analysis with fuzzing and symbolic execution Open
Hybrid testing approaches that involve fuzz testing and symbolic execution\nhave shown promising results in achieving high code coverage, uncovering subtle\nerrors and vulnerabilities in a variety of software applications. In this paper\nw…
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Development of a Real-Time PCR for a Sensitive One-Step Coprodiagnosis Allowing both the Identification of Carnivore Feces and the Detection of Toxocara spp. and Echinococcus multilocularis Open
Studying the environmental occurrence of parasites of concern for humans and animals based on coprosamples is an expanding field of work in epidemiology and the ecology of health. Detecting and quantifying Toxocara spp. and Echinococcus mu…
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Inferring Mycobacterium bovis transmission between cattle and badgers using isolates from the Randomised Badger Culling Trial Open
Mycobacterium bovis ( M . bovis) is a causative agent of bovine tuberculosis, a significant source of morbidity and mortality in the global cattle industry. The Randomised Badger Culling Trial was a field experiment carried out between 199…
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Phylodynamic analysis of an emergent <i>Mycobacterium bovis</i> outbreak in an area with no previously known wildlife infections Open
Understanding how emergent pathogens successfully establish themselves and persist in previously unaffected populations is a crucial problem in disease ecology, with important implications for disease management. In multi‐host pathogen sys…
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Bovine Tuberculosis and Badger Control in Britain: Science, Policy and Politics Open
Bovine tuberculosis (bovine TB) is the most economically important animal health policy issue in Britain. The problem of what to do about badgers has plagued successive governments since a dead badger was discovered with bovine TB in 1971.…
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An active‐radio‐frequency‐identification system capable of identifying co‐locations and social‐structure: Validation with a wild free‐ranging animal Open
Behavioural events that are important for understanding sociobiology and movement ecology are often rare, transient and localised, but can occur at spatially distant sites e.g. territorial incursions and co‐locating individuals. Existing a…
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Early‐life seasonal, weather and social effects on telomere length in a wild mammal Open
Early‐life environmental conditions can provide a source of individual variation in life‐history strategies and senescence patterns. Conditions experienced in early life can be quantified by measuring telomere length, which can act as a bi…
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Pathogenesis of Mycobacterium bovis Infection: the Badger Model As a Paradigm for Understanding Tuberculosis in Animals Open
Tuberculosis in animals is caused principally by infection with Mycobacterium bovis and the potential for transmission of infection to humans is often the fundamental driver for surveillance of disease in livestock and wild animals. Howeve…
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Daily energy expenditure in the face of predation: hedgehog energetics in rural landscapes Open
Failure to balance daily energy expenditure (DEE) with energy intake can have an impact on survival and reproduction, and therefore on the persistence of populations. Here we study the DEE of the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus), wh…
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Is moving from targeted culling to BCG-vaccination of badgers (Meles meles) associated with an unacceptable increased incidence of cattle herd tuberculosis in the Republic of Ireland? A practical non-inferiority wildlife intervention study in the Republic of Ireland (2011-2017) Open
Bovine tuberculosis (BTB) remains as a costly disease of cattle-herds in the Republic of Ireland (ROI). This persistence is partially attributable to the presence of M. bovis infection in a wildlife reservoir, the European badger (Meles me…
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An Integrated, Tentative Remote-Sensing Approach Based on NDVI Entropy to Model Canine Distemper Virus in Wildlife and to Prompt Science-Based Management Policies Open
Changes in land use and land cover as well as feedback on the climate deeply affect the landscape worldwide. This phenomenon has also enlarged the human–wildlife interface and amplified the risk of potential new zoonoses. The expansion of …
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Demographic buffering and compensatory recruitment promotes the persistence of disease in a wildlife population Open
Demographic buffering allows populations to persist by compensating for fluctuations in vital rates, including disease‐induced mortality. Using long‐term data on a badger ( Meles meles Linnaeus, 1758) population naturally infected with Myc…
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Negative density-dependent parasitism in a group-living carnivore Open
Animals living at high population densities commonly experience greater exposure to disease, leading to increased parasite burdens. However, social animals can benefit immunologically and hygienically from cooperation, and individuals may …
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Effect of culling on individual badger <i>Meles meles</i> behaviour: Potential implications for bovine tuberculosis transmission Open
Culling wildlife as a form of disease management can have unexpected and sometimes counterproductive outcomes. In the UK, badgers Meles meles are culled in efforts to reduce badger‐to‐cattle transmission of Mycobacterium bovis , the causat…
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Contact networks structured by sex underpin sex‐specific epidemiology of infection Open
Contact networks are fundamental to the transmission of infection and host sex often affects the acquisition and progression of infection. However, the epidemiological impacts of sex‐related variation in animal contact networks have rarely…
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Climate and anthropogenic factors determine site occupancy in Scotland's Northern‐range badger population: implications of context‐dependent responses under environmental change Open
Aim In the light of human‐induced rapid environmental change ( HIREC ), populations are exposed to ever‐greater bioclimatic stress at the edge of a species’ historic range. The distribution dynamics of European badgers ( Meles meles ) at t…
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The Distribution of Bovine Tuberculosis in Cattle Farms Is Linked to Cattle Trade and Badger-Mediated Contact Networks in South-Western France, 2007–2015 Open
Bovine tuberculosis (bTB), mainly caused by Mycobacterium bovis, can affect domestic and wild animals as well as humans. Identifying the major transmission mechanisms in an area is necessary for disease control and management. In this stud…