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Social group size affects Mycobacterium bovis infection in European badgers (Meles meles)

  1. Rosie Woodroffe1,2,*,
  2. Christl A. Donnelly2,3,
  3. Gao Wei4,
  4. D.R. Cox2,5,
  5. F. John Bourne2,
  6. Terry Burke6,
  7. Roger K. Butlin6,
  8. C.L. Cheeseman7,
  9. George Gettinby2,8,
  10. Peter Gilks4,
  11. Simon Hedges9,
  12. Helen E. Jenkins3,
  13. W. Thomas Johnston4,
  14. John P. McInerney2,
  15. W. Ivan Morrison2,10,
  16. Lisa C. Pope6

Article first published online: 30 MAR 2009

DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2656.2009.01545.x

Issue

Journal of Animal Ecology

Journal of Animal Ecology

Volume 78, Issue 4, pages 818–827, July 2009

Additional Information

How to Cite

Woodroffe, R., Donnelly, C. A., Wei, G., Cox, D.R., Bourne, F. J., Burke, T., Butlin, R. K., Cheeseman, C.L., Gettinby, G., Gilks, P., Hedges, S., Jenkins, H. E., Johnston, W. T., McInerney, J. P., Morrison, W. I. and Pope, L. C. (2009), Social group size affects Mycobacterium bovis infection in European badgers (Meles meles). Journal of Animal Ecology, 78: 818–827. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2656.2009.01545.x

Author Information

  1. 1

    Institute of Zoology, Regent's Park, London NW1 4RY, UK;

  2. 2

    Independent Scientific Group on Cattle TB, c/o Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs, 1A Page Street, London SW1P 4PQ, UK;

  3. 3

    MRC Centre for Outbreak Analysis and Modelling, Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College, London W2 1PG, UK;

  4. 4

    Department of Infectious Disease Epidemiology, Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College, London W2 1PG, UK;

  5. 5

    Nuffield College, Oxford OX1 1NF, UK;

  6. 6

    Department of Animal and Plant Sciences, University of Sheffield, Sheffield S10 2TN, UK;

  7. 7

    Central Science Laboratory, Sand Hutton, York YO41 1LZ, UK;

  8. 8

    Department of Statistics and Modelling Science, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow G1 1XH, UK;

  9. 9

    Wildlife Conservation Society, 2300 Southern Boulevard, Bronx, NY 10460, USA; and

  10. 10

    Centre for Tropical Veterinary Medicine, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies, University of Edinburgh, Easter Bush EH25 9RG, UK

* *Correspondence author. E-mail: rosie.woodroffe@ioz.ac.uk

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 4 JUN 2009
  2. Article first published online: 30 MAR 2009
  3. Received 11 September 2008; accepted 17 February 2009Handling Associate Editor: Atle Mysterud

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Keywords:

  • bovine tuberculosis;
  • cattle TB;
  • wildlife disease;
  • wildlife host

Summary

  • 1
    In most social animals, the prevalence of directly transmitted pathogens increases in larger groups and at higher population densities. Such patterns are predicted by models of Mycobacterium bovis infection in European badgers (Meles meles).
  • 2
    We investigated the relationship between badger abundance and M. bovis prevalence, using data on 2696 adult badgers in 10 populations sampled at the start of the Randomized Badger Culling Trial.
  • 3
    M. bovis prevalence was consistently higher at low badger densities and in small social groups. M. bovis prevalence was also higher among badgers whose genetic profiles suggested that they had immigrated into their assigned social groups.
  • 4
    The association between high M. bovis prevalence and small badger group size appeared not to have been caused by previous small-scale culling in study areas, which had been suspended, on average, 5 years before the start of the current study.
  • 5
    The observed pattern of prevalence might occur through badgers in smaller groups interacting more frequently with members of neighbouring groups; detailed behavioural data are needed to test this hypothesis. Likewise, longitudinal data are needed to determine whether the size of infected groups might be suppressed by disease-related mortality.
  • 6
    Although M. bovis prevalence was lower at high population densities, the absolute number of infected badgers was higher. However, this does not necessarily mean that the risk of M. bovis transmission to cattle is highest at high badger densities, since transmission risk depends on badger behaviour as well as on badger density.
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