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Demonstrating frequency-dependent transmission of sarcoptic mange in red foxes |
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| Authors: | Eleanor S Devenish-Nelson Shane A Richards Stephen Harris Carl Soulsbury Philip A Stephens |
| Institution: | 1.School of Biological and Biomedical Sciences, Durham University, Durham, DH1 3LE, UK;2.School of Biological Sciences, University of Bristol, Bristol, BS8 1TQ, UK;3.School of Life Sciences, University of Lincoln, Lincoln, LN6 7TS, UK |
| Abstract: | Understanding the relationship between disease transmission and host density is essential for predicting disease spread and control. Using long-term data on sarcoptic mange in a red fox Vulpes vulpes population, we tested long-held assumptions of density- and frequency-dependent direct disease transmission. We also assessed the role of indirect transmission. Contrary to assumptions typical of epidemiological models, mange dynamics are better explained by frequency-dependent disease transmission than by density-dependent transmission in this canid. We found no support for indirect transmission. We present the first estimates of R0 and age-specific transmission coefficients for mange in foxes. These parameters are important for managing this poorly understood but highly contagious and economically damaging disease. |
| Keywords: | age-specific infection basic reproductive number frequency-dependent transmission indirect transmission susceptible– exposed– infected (SEI) model |