Wolves contribute to disease control in a multi-host system

• Published in: Scientific Reports
• Main Authors: Tanner, E., White, A., Acevedo, P., Balseiro, A., Marcos, J., Gortázar, C.
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: Nature Publishing Group UK 2019
• Subjects: Article; Canis lupus
• Online Access: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6538665/; http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31138835; https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-019-44148-9

We combine model results with field data for a system of wolves (Canis lupus) that prey on wild boar (Sus scrofa), a wildlife reservoir of tuberculosis, to examine how predation may contribute to disease control in multi-host systems. Results show that predation can lead to a marked reduction in the prevalence of infection without leading to a reduction in host population density since mortality due to predation can be compensated by a reduction in disease induced mortality. A key finding therefore is that a population that harbours a virulent infection can be regulated at a similar density by disease at high prevalence or by predation at low prevalence. Predators may therefore provide a key ecosystem service which should be recognised when considering human-carnivore conflicts and the conservation and re-establishment of carnivore populations.