Rationalizing spatial exploration patterns of wild animals and humans through a temporal discounting framework

Understanding the exploration patterns of foragers in the wild provides fundamental insight into animal behavior. Recent experimental evidence has demonstrated that path lengths (distances between consecutive turns) taken by foragers are well fitted by a power law distribution. Numerous theoretical contributions have posited that “Lévy random walks”—which can produce power law path length distributions—are optimal for memoryless agents searching a sparse reward landscape. It is unclear, however, whether such a strategy is efficient for cognitively complex agents, from wild animals to humans. Here, we developed a model to explain the emergence of apparent power law path length distributions in animals that can learn about their environments. In our model, the agent’s goal during search is to build an internal model of the distribution of rewards in space that takes into account the cost of time to reach distant locations (i.e., temporally discounting rewards). For an agent with such a goal, we find that an optimal model of exploration in fact produces hyperbolic path lengths, which are well approximated by power laws. We then provide support for our model by showing that humans in a laboratory spatial exploration task search space systematically and modify their search patterns under a cost of time. In addition, we find that path length distributions in a large dataset obtained from free-ranging marine vertebrates are well described by our hyperbolic model. Thus, we provide a general theoretical framework for understanding spatial exploration patterns of cognitively complex foragers.

Carriage of Staphylococcus aureus by free-living wild animals in Spain

The presence of methicillin-susceptible Staphylococcus aureus (MSSA) was analyzed in different free-living wild animals to assess the genetic diversity and predominant genotypes on each animal species. Samples were taken from the skin and/or nares, and isolates were characterized by spa typing, multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and antimicrobial susceptibility testing. The proportion of MSSA carriers were 5.00, 22.93, 19.78, and 17.67% in Eurasian griffon vulture, Iberian ibex, red deer, and wild boar, respectively (P = 0.057). A higher proportion of isolates (P = 0.000) were recovered from nasal samples (78.51%) than skin samples (21.49%), but the 9.26% of red deer and 18.25% of wild boar would have been undetected if only nasal samples had been tested. Sixty-three different spa types were identified, including 25 new spa types. The most common were t528 (43.59%) in Iberian ibex, t548 and t11212 (15.79% and 14.04%) in red deer, and t3750 (36.11%) in wild boar. By MLST, 27 STs were detected, of which 12 had not been described previously. The most frequent were ST581 for Iberian ibex (48.72%), ST425 for red deer (29.82%), and ST2328 for wild boar (42.36%). Isolates from Eurasian griffon vulture belong to ST133. Host specificity has been observed for the most frequent spa types and STs (P = 0.000). The highest resistance percentage was found against benzylpenicillin (average, 22.2%), although most of the S. aureus isolates were susceptible to all antimicrobial tested. Basically, MSSA isolates were different from those MRSA isolates previously detected in the same animal species.

Wild Ungulate Decision-Making and the Role of Tiny Refuges in Human-Dominated Landscapes

Wildlife conservation in human-dominated landscapes requires that we understand how animals, when making habitat-use decisions, obtain diverse and dynamically occurring resources while avoiding risks, induced by both natural predators and anthropogenic threats. Little is known about the underlying processes that enable wild animals to persist in densely populated human-dominated landscapes, particularly in developing countries. In a complex, semi-arid, fragmented, human-dominated agricultural landscape, we analyzed the habitat-use of blackbuck, a large herbivore endemic to the Indian sub-continent. We hypothesized that blackbuck would show flexible habitat-use behaviour and be risk averse when resource quality in the landscape is high, and less sensitive to risk otherwise. Overall, blackbuck appeared to be strongly influenced by human activity and they offset risks by using small protected patches (similar to 3 km(2)) when they could afford to do so. Blackbuck habitat use varied dynamically corresponding with seasonally-changing levels of resources and risks, with protected habitats registering maximum use. The findings show that human activities can strongly influence and perhaps limit ungulate habitat-use and behaviour, but spatial heterogeneity in risk, particularly the presence of refuges, can allow ungulates to persist in landscapes with high human and livestock densities.

Viral metagenomic analysis of feces of wild small carnivores

Background: Recent studies have clearly demonstrated the enormous virus diversity that exists among wild animals. This exemplifies the required expansion of our knowledge of the virus diversity present in wildlife, as well as the potential transmission of these viruses to domestic animals or humans. Methods: In the present study we evaluated the viral diversity of fecal samples (n = 42) collected from 10 different species of wild small carnivores inhabiting the northern part of Spain using random PCR in combination with next-generation sequencing. Samples were collected from American mink (Neovison vison), European mink (Mustela lutreola), European polecat (Mustela putorius), European pine marten (Martes martes), stone marten (Martes foina), Eurasian otter (Lutra lutra) and Eurasian badger (Meles meles) of the family of Mustelidae; common genet (Genetta genetta) of the family of Viverridae; red fox (Vulpes vulpes) of the family of Canidae and European wild cat (Felis silvestris) of the family of Felidae. Results: A number of sequences of possible novel viruses or virus variants were detected, including a theilovirus, phleboviruses, an amdovirus, a kobuvirus and picobirnaviruses. Conclusions: Using random PCR in combination with next generation sequencing, sequences of various novel viruses or virus variants were detected in fecal samples collected from Spanish carnivores. Detected novel viruses highlight the viral diversity that is present in fecal material of wild carnivores.

New animals, new landscapes and new worldviews: the Iron Age to Roman transition at Fishbourne

Anthropologists and cultural geographers have long accepted that animals play an important role in the creation of human cultures. However, such beliefs are yet to be embraced by archaeologists, who seldom give zooarchaeological data much consideration beyond the occasional economic or environmental reconstruction. In an attempt to highlight animal remains as a source of cultural information, this paper examines the evidence for the changing relationship between people and wild animals in Iron Age and Roman southern England. Special attention is given to ‘exotic’ species — in particular fallow deer, domestic fowl and the hare — whose management increased around AD 43. In Iron Age Britain the concept of wild game reserves was seemingly absent, but the post-Conquest appearance of new landscape features such as vivaria, leporaria and piscinae indicates a change in worldview from a situation where people seemingly negotiated with the ‘wilderness’ and ‘wild things’ to one where people felt they had the right or the responsibility to bring them to order. Using Fishbourne Roman Palace as a case study, we argue that wild and exotic animals represented far more than gastronomic treats or symbols of Roman identity, instead influencing the way in which people engaged with, traversed and experienced their surroundings.

All the animals are gone? The politics of contemporary hunter arcade games.

Recent proliferation and popularity of personal computer and console games has meant that scholarship around video arcade games has been largely ignored. Arcade games had their halcyon days during the 1970s and 1980s when 'Space Invaders', 'Pong' and 'Donkey Kong' were household names. The inception of scholarship into games occurred in the 1990s; a time when arcade games were writ small in the cultural imagination, at least compared to the newer home computer and video games. Thus in games theory they are typically discussed only in terms of their role as antecedents to their more popular kin. Moreover, they seem innocuous because they are so publicly accessible. Against this assumption, and lack of scholarship, this paper explores a selection of contemporary arcade games which we describe as 'hunting' games. Arcade hunting games are first-person shooter (FPS) involving one or more players shooting simulated wild animals. They are commonly situated in cinema foyers, hotels, and family entertainment centres. However, despite a presumption of institutional moderation afforded by the public accessibility of these spaces, this paper argues that this genre works through a range of political modalities that require more scholarly consideration than currently given.

Density of sand flies (diptera: psychodidae) in domestic and wild animal shelters in an area of visceral leishmaniasis in the state of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil

XIMENES, Maria de Fátima Freire de Melo; SOUZA, Maria de Fátima de; CASTELLON, Eloy Guilhermo. Density of sand flies (Diptera: Psychodidae) in domestic and wild animal shelters in an area of visceral Leishmaniasis in the State of Rio Grande do Norte, Brazil. Memorias do Instituto Oswaldo Cruz, Rio de Janeiro, v.94, n.4, p.427-432, jul./ago. 1999. Disponivel em: Acesso em: 4 out. 2010.

DNA extraction from hair shafts of wild Brazilian felids and canids

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Search for Mycobacterium leprae in wild mammals

Leprosy is still a worldwide public health problem. Brazil and India show the highest prevalence rates of the disease. Natural infection of armadillos Dasypus novemcinctus with Mycobacterium leprae has been reported in some regions of the United States. Identification of bacilli is difficult, particularly due to its inability to grow in vitro. The use of molecular tools represents a fast and sensitive alternative method for diagnosis of mycobacteriosis. In the present study, the diagnostic methods used were bacilloscopy, histopathology, microbiology, and PCR using specific primers for M. leprae repetitive sequences. PCR were performed using genomic DNA extracted from 138 samples of liver, spleen, lymph nodes, and skin of 44 D. novemcinctus, Euphractus sexcinctus, Cabassous unicinctus, and C. tatouay armadillos from the Middle Western region of the state of São Paulo and from the experimental station of Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuária (EMBRAPA) Pantanal, located in Pantanal da Nhecolândia of Mato Grosso do Sul state. Also, the molecular analysis of 19 samples from internal organs of other road killed species of wild animals, such as Nasua nasua (ring-tailed coati), Procyon cancrivoros (hand-skinned), Cerdocyon thous (dog-pity-bush), Cavia aperea (restless cavy), Didelphis albiventris (skunk), Sphigurrus spinosus (hedgehog), and Gallictis vittata (ferret) showed PCR negative data. None of the 157 analyzed samples had shown natural mycobacterial infection. Only the armadillo inoculated with material collected from untreated multibacillary leprosy patient presented PCR positive and its genomic sequencing revealed 100% identity with M. leprae. According to these preliminary studies, based on the used methodology, it is possible to conclude that wild mammals seem not to play an important role in the epidemiology of leprosy in the Middle Western region of the São Paulo state and in the Pantanal of Mato Grosso do Sul state.

DIGESTIVE PROTEASES FROM WILD AND FARMED MALE MORPHOTYPES OF THE AMAZON RIVER PRAWN (MACROBRACHIUM AMAZONICUM)

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Molecular detection of Leishmania spp. in road-killed wild mammals in the Central Western area of the State of São Paulo, Brazil

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Serological evidence of Infection by Leishmania (Leishmania) infantum (Synonym: Leishmania (Leishmania) chagasi) in free-ranging wild mammals in a nonendemic region of the state of São Paulo, Brazil

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Selection of Effective Stone Tools by Wild Bearded Capuchin Monkeys

Appreciation of objects` affordances and planning is a hallmark of human technology. Archeological evidence suggests that Pliocene hominins selected raw material for tool making [1, 2]. Stone pounding has been considered a precursor to tool making [3, 4], and tool use by living primates provides insight into the origins of material selection by human ancestors. No study has experimentally investigated selectivity of stone tools in wild animals, although chimpanzees appear to select stones according to properties of different nut species [5, 6]. We recently discovered that wild capuchins with terrestrial habits [7] use hammers to crack open nuts on anvils [8-10]. As for chimpanzees, examination of anvil sites suggests stone selectivity [11], but indirect evidence cannot prove it. Here, we demonstrate that capuchins, which last shared a common ancestor with humans 35 million years ago, faced with stones differing in functional features (friability and weight) choose, transport, and use the effective stone to crack nuts. Moreover, when weight cannot be judged by visual attributes, capuchins act to gain information to guide their selection. Thus, planning actions and intentional selection of tools is within the ken of monkeys and similar to the tool activities of hominins and apes.

Routine phenotypic identification of bacterial species of the family Pasteurellaceae isolated from animals

Pasteurellaceae are bacteria with an important role as primary or opportunistic, mainly respiratory, pathogens in domestic and wild animals. Some species of Pasteurellaceae cause severe diseases with high economic losses in commercial animal husbandry and are of great diagnostic concern. Because of new data on the phylogeny of Pasteurellaceae, their taxonomy has recently been revised profoundly, thus requiring an improved phenotypic differentiation procedure to identify the individual species of this family. A new and simplified procedure to identify species of Actinobacillus, Avibacterium, Gallibacterium, Haemophilus, Mannheimia, Nicoletella, and Pasteurella, which are most commonly isolated from clinical samples of diseased animals in veterinary diagnostic laboratories, is presented in the current study. The identification procedure was evaluated with 40 type and reference strains and with 267 strains from routine diagnostic analysis of various animal species, including 28 different bacterial species. Type, reference, and field strains were analyzed by 16S ribosomal RNA (rrs) and rpoB gene sequencing for unambiguous species determination as a basis to evaluate the phenotypic differentiation schema. Primary phenotypic differentiation is based on beta-nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (beta-NAD) dependence and hemolysis, which are readily determined on the isolation medium. The procedure divides the 28 species into 4 groups for which particular biochemical reactions were chosen to identify the bacterial species. The phenotypic identification procedure allowed researchers to determine the species of 240 out of 267 field strains. The procedure is an easy and cost-effective system for the rapid identification of species of the Pasteurellaceae family isolated from clinical specimens of animals.

Survey of bluetongue virus infection in free-ranging wild ruminants in Switzerland.

BACKGROUND In 2006, bluetongue virus serotype 8 (BTV-8) was detected for the first time in central Europe. Measures to control the infection in livestock were implemented in Switzerland but the question was raised whether free-ranging wildlife could be a maintenance host for BTV-8. Furthermore Toggenburg orbivirus (TOV), considered as a potential 25th BTV serotype, was detected in 2007 in domestic goats in Switzerland and wild ruminants were considered a potential source of infection. To assess prevalences of BTV-8 and TOV infections in wildlife, we conducted a serological and virological survey in red deer, roe deer, Alpine chamois and Alpine ibex between 2009 and 2011. Because samples originating from wildlife carcasses are often of poor quality, we also documented the influence of hemolysis on test results, and evaluated the usefulness of confirmatory tests. RESULTS Ten out of 1,898 animals (0.5%, 95% confidence interval 0.3-1.0%) had detectable antibodies against BTV-8 and BTV-8 RNA was found in two chamois and one roe deer (0.3%, 0.1-0.8%). Seroprevalence was highest among red deer, and the majority of positive wild animals were sampled close to areas where outbreaks had been reported in livestock. Most samples were hemolytic and the range of the optical density percentage values obtained in the screening test increased with increasing hemolysis. Confirmatory tests significantly increased specificity of the testing procedure and proved to be applicable even on poor quality samples. Nearly all samples confirmed as positive had an optical density percentage value greater than 50% in the ELISA screening. CONCLUSIONS Prevalence of BTV-8 infection was low, and none of the tested animals were positive for TOV. Currently, wild ruminants are apparently not a reservoir for these viruses in Switzerland. However, we report for the first time BTV-8 RNA in Alpine chamois. This animal was found at high altitude and far from a domestic outbreak, which suggests that the virus could spread into/through the Alps. Regarding testing procedures, hemolysis did not significantly affect test results but confirmatory tests proved to be necessary to obtain reliable prevalence estimates. The cut-off value recommended by the manufacturer for the screening test was applicable for wildlife samples.