Border Disease Virus: An Exceptional Driver of Chamois Populations Among Other Threats.

Emmanuel Serrano,Santiago Lavín,Oscar Cabezón,Mathieu Garel,Laura Fernández-Sirera,Roser Velarde,Emmanuelle Gilot-Fromont,Xavier Fernández-Aguilar,Rosa Rosell,Ignasi Marco,Andreu Colom-Cadena

doi:10.3389/fmicb.2015.01307

Abstract

Though it is accepted that emerging infectious diseases are a threat to planet biodiversity, little information exists about their role as drivers of species extinction. Populations are also affected by natural catastrophes and other pathogens, making it difficult to estimate the particular impact of emerging infectious diseases. Border disease virus genogroup 4 (BDV-4) caused a previously unreported decrease in populations of Pyrenean chamois (Rupicapra pyrenaica pyrenaica) in Spain. Using a population viability analysis, we compared probabilities of extinction of a virtual chamois population affected by winter conditions, density dependence, keratoconjunctivitis, sarcoptic mange, and BD outbreaks. BD-affected populations showed double risk of becoming extinct in 50 years, confirming the exceptional ability of this virus to drive chamois populations.

Highlights

In the early 21st century, infectious diseases are considered a substantial threat to planet biodiversity (Daszak et al, 2000)
The etiological agent of these epidemics was classified into the Border disease virus genogroup 4 (BDV-4; Arnal et al, 2004), which had been present in the Pyrenees for at least two decades (Marco et al, 2011)
The length of the epidemics was estimated by averaging the mean number of years that chamois population is affected by the disease after the first outbreak: 2 years for infectious keratoconjunctivitis (IKC) (Loison et al, 1996; Giacometti et al, 2002; Arnal et al, 2013), 5 years for sarcoptic mange (SM) (Fernández-Morán et al, 1997; Rossi et al, 2007), and 5 years for border disease (BD) (Fernández-Sirera et al, 2012a)

Summary

INTRODUCTION

In the early 21st century, infectious diseases are considered a substantial threat to planet biodiversity (Daszak et al, 2000). While the importance of pathogens in species conservation is common knowledge, few people understand the power of diseases to drive extinction, or cause important economic losses An example of this potential role of pathogens occurred in the Central and Eastern Pyrenees in 2001, when a border disease virus was responsible for a dramatic decrease (over 80%) of several Pyrenean chamois (Rupicapra pyrenaica pyrenaica) populations (Marco et al, 2009). While these measures aimed to minimize chamois mortality in the Pyrenees, the effects of the epidemics remain (Marco et al, 2015) It is unclear if the attention paid to BDV is groundless given that other older diseases (e.g., infectious keratoconjunctivitis, IKC or sarcoptic mange, SM) have caused population collapses of chamois throughout Europe. We briefly review the natural history of the affected host (Rupicapra spp.) and the epidemiology of these three diseases

A SHORT BIOSKETCH OF CHAMOIS

Findings

CONCLUDING REMARKS