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Free-Ranging Pig and Wild Boar Interactions in an Endemic Area of African Swine Fever

Investigation published in Frontiers in veterinary science

October 30th, 2019

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is spreading throughout Eurasia and there is no vaccine nor treatment available, so the control is based on the implementation of strict sanitary measures. These measures include depopulation of infected and in-contact animals and export restrictions, which can lead to important economic losses, making currently African swine fever (ASF) the greatest threat to the global swine industry. ASF has been endemic on the island of Sardinia since 1978, the longest persistence of anywhere in Eurasia. In Sardinia, eradication programs have failed, in large part due to the lack of farm professionalism, the high density of wild boar and the presence of non-registered domestic pigs (free-ranging pigs). In order to clarify how the virus is transmitted from domestic to wild swine, we examined the interaction between free-ranging pigs and wild boar in an ASF-endemic area of Sardinia. To this end, a field study was carried out on direct and indirect interactions, using monitoring by camera trapping in different areas and risk points. Critical time windows (CTWs) for the virus to survive in the environment (long window) and remain infectious (short window) were estimated, and based on these, the number of indirect interactions were determined. Free-ranging pigs indirectly interacted often with wild boar (long window = 6.47 interactions/day, short window = 1.31 interactions/day) and these interactions (long window) were mainly at water sources. They also directly interacted 0.37 times per day, especially between 14:00 and 21:00 h, which is much higher than for other interspecific interactions observed in Mediterranean scenarios. The highly frequent interactions at this interspecific interface may help explain the more than four-decade-long endemicity of ASF on the island. Supporting that free-ranging pigs can act as a bridge to transmit ASFV between wild boar and registered domestic pigs. This study contributes broadly to improving the knowledge on the estimation of frequencies of direct and indirect interactions between wild and free-ranging domestic swine. As well as supporting the importance of the analysis of interspecific interactions in shared infectious diseases, especially for guiding disease management. Finally, this work illustrates the power of the camera-trapping method for analyzing interspecific interfaces




Cadenas-Fernández E., Sanchez-Vizcaino JM., Pintore A., Denurra D., Cherchi M., Jurado C., Vicente J. and Barasona JA..




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Free-Ranging Pig and Wild Boar Interactions in an Endemic Area of African Swine Fever

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Free-Ranging Pig and Wild Boar Interactions in an Endemic Area of African Swine Fever



Participants:

Universidad ComplutenseServicio de Inmunología Viral y Medicina Preventiva (SUAT). Centro de Vigilancia Sanitaria Veterinaria (VISAVET). Universidad Complutense (UCM).

Universidad ComplutenseDepartamento de Sanidad Animal. Facultad de Veterinaria. Universidad Complutense (UCM).

Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della SardegnaIstituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale della Sardegna (IZSSA).

Gobierno de Castilla-La ManchaInstituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos (IREC). Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC). Universidad de Castilla La Mancha (UCLM). Gobierno de Castilla-La Mancha (JCCM).







Frontiers in veterinary science
FACTOR YEAR Q
2.245 2019

NLMID: 101666658

PMID: 31737649

ISSN: 2297-1769



TITLE: Free-Ranging Pig and Wild Boar Interactions in an Endemic Area of African Swine Fever


JOURNAL: Front Vet Sci


NUMERACIÓN: 6:376


AÑO: 2019


PUBLISHER: Lausanne : Frontiers Media S.A


AUTHORS: Cadenas-Fernández E., Sanchez-Vizcaino JM., Pintore A., Denurra D., Cherchi M., Jurado C., Vicente J. and Barasona JA..


2nd
José Manuel Sánchez-Vizcaíno Rodríguez
Last
José Ángel Barasona García-Arévalo

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fvets.2019.00376


CITE THIS PUBLICATION:

Cadenas-Fernández E., Sanchez-Vizcaino JM., Pintore A., Denurra D., Cherchi M., Jurado C., Vicente J. and Barasona JA. Free-Ranging Pig and Wild Boar Interactions in an Endemic Area of African Swine Fever. Frontiers in veterinary science. 6:376. 2019. (A). ISSN: 2297-1769. DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2019.00376


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