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Freshwater and Rice Fields Linked to Spirometra Infection in Hokkaido Foxes

Research: Ecology, Disease, parasites & microbiology

The tapeworm Spirometra mansoni, a parasite that can also infect people, was found in 6.4% of 251 red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) surveyed across Hokkaido. The foxes belonged to the Hokkaido subspecies V. v. schrencki, and infections were unevenly distributed across the island.

Researchers compared the foxes’ infection status with land use and climate around the places where they were collected. Infection was associated with a land-use gradient marked by greater coverage of freshwater and rice paddies and less coverage of other open land. The climate factors examined showed no significant effects.

Red foxes are the parasite’s definitive host, where it reaches its adult stage. Its life cycle may also involve intermediate hosts, including aquatic animals such as frogs and copepods. Copepods are small crustaceans common in freshwater. The researchers suggest that land use could shape transmission by affecting the abundance of these hosts, but the survey did not establish that land use caused infection or confirm this proposed pathway. It identifies a landscape pattern associated with infection in Hokkaido foxes.

Sources and image credit

  1. Land Use Affects Spirometra mansoni Infection in Red Fox in Hokkaido, JapanPrimærkildens utgiverside og sammendrag. Fullteksten var ikke tilgjengelig i kontrollgrunnlaget. Sammendraget oppgir studieart og område, utvalgsstørrelse, prevalens, arealbruks- og klimafunn samt forfatternes foreslåtte forklaring om mellomverter.

Image: A red fox (Vulpes vulpes) stands on snow-covered ground in Japan in February 2021. Photo: MIKI Yoshihito. (#mikiyoshihito) / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 2.0. Representative photograph. · CC BY 2.0 · Source

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Red Fox Vulpes vulpes Explore species

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