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Updated: Jun 13, 2026
06:27
Assaying Predatory Feeding Behaviors in Pristionchus and Other Nematodes
Published on: September 4, 2016
Predator dietary response to prey density variation and consequences for cestode transmission
Francis Raoul1, Peter Deplazes, Dominique Rieffel
1Department of Chrono-environment, UMR UFC/CNRS 6249 aff. INRA, University of Franche-Comté, 25030, Besançon, France. francis.raoul@univ-fcomte.fr
Oecologia
|May 13, 2010
Summary
Red foxes show species-specific predation on rodents, impacting Echinococcus multilocularis transmission. Predation and immunity complexly regulate parasite spread, highlighting the need for non-linear models in transmission dynamics.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Parasitology
- Wildlife Biology
Background:
- Predator functional responses to prey density are key to understanding predation patterns.
- The impact of functional responses on parasite transmission, particularly Echinococcus multilocularis, is understudied.
- Rodents (Microtus arvalis, Arvicola terrestris) are primary prey for red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) and hosts for E. multilocularis.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the dietary and contamination responses of red foxes to varying densities of their rodent prey.
- To explore how these responses influence the transmission dynamics of Echinococcus multilocularis.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of red fox diet composition in relation to prey (M. arvalis, A. terrestris) density.
- Assessment of fox contamination levels with E. multilocularis based on prey consumption.
- Modeling of functional responses (dietary and contamination) using established ecological frameworks.
Main Results:
- Red foxes exhibited a non-significant dietary response to M. arvalis density but a type III (sigmoidal) response to A. terrestris density, suggesting potential interference.
- Fox contamination response followed a type II (asymptotic) pattern for both prey species.
- Predation patterns are species-specific, with distinct responses to different prey.
Conclusions:
- Echinococcus multilocularis transmission is likely regulated by a combination of species-specific fox predation and host immunological factors.
- Understanding trophically transmitted parasite dynamics requires considering complex interactions and non-linear patterns in multi-host systems.
- The study emphasizes the need to incorporate complex ecological and immunological factors into parasite transmission models.
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