Long-term trends in helminth infections of wood mice (Apodemus sylvaticus) from the vicinity of Malham Tarn in North Yorkshire, England

Behnke, JM ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9396-2572, Rogan, MT ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5399-8570, Craig, PS, Jackson, JA ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0330-5478 and Hide, G ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3608-0175 2021, 'Long-term trends in helminth infections of wood mice (Apodemus sylvaticus) from the vicinity of Malham Tarn in North Yorkshire, England' , Parasitology, 184 (4) , pp. 451-463.

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Abstract

Helminth infections in wood mice (n=483), trapped over a period of 26 years in the woods surrounding Malham Tarn in N. Yorkshire, were analysed. Although ten species of helminths were identified, the overall mean species richness was 1.01 species/mouse indicating that the helminth community was relatively depauperate in this wood mouse population. The dominant species was Heligmosomoides polygyrus, the prevalence (64.6%) and abundance (10.4 worms/mouse) of which declined significantly over the study period. Because of the dominance of this species, analyses of higher taxa (combined helminths and combined nematodes) also revealed significantly declining values for prevalence, although not abundance. Helminth species richness and Brillouin’s index of diversity did not show covariance with year, neither did those remaining species whose overall prevalence exceeded 5% (Syphacia stroma, Aonchotheca murissylvatici and Plagiorchis muris). Significant age effects were detected for prevalence and abundance of all higher taxa, H. polygyrus and P. muris, and for helminth species richness and Brillouin’s index of diversity, reflecting the accumulation of helminths with increasing host age. Only two cases of sex bias were found; male bias in abundance of P. muris and combined Digenea. We discuss the significance of these results and hypothesise about the underlying causes.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information:	** From PubMed via Jisc Publications Router **Journal IDs: eissn 1469-8161 **Article IDs: pubmed: 33256865; pii: S0031182020002243 **History: published 01-12-2020
Schools:	Schools > School of Environment and Life Sciences > Biomedical Research Centre
Journal or Publication Title:	Parasitology
Publisher:	Cambridge University Press
ISSN:	0031-1820
Related URLs:	Publication
SWORD Depositor:	Publications Router
Depositing User:	Publications Router
Date Deposited:	15 Dec 2020 10:12
Last Modified:	16 Feb 2022 06:24
URI:	https://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/59106

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