Abstract
Inbreeding influences the response of these animals to different pathogens in the wild. Inbreeding in animals can increase their susceptibility to pathogens, but direct evidence from wild populations is scarce1,2 and it is unclear whether all pathogens are affected equally. Here we analyse rescued California sea lions afflicted with a range of different pathogens, and find that sick animals have higher-than-normal parental relatedness, with the extent varying among disease classes. Our findings indicate that mortality in natural populations may not be entirely random and that inbred individuals could act as more effective reservoirs of infectious agents.
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