Dual infestation of a leopard by Wohlfahrtia magnifica and Lipoptena chalcomelaena

Wildlife parasitology: sample collection and processing, diagnostic constraints, and methodological challenges in terrestrial carnivores

Wild terrestrial carnivores play a crucial role as reservoir, maintenance, and spillover hosts for a wide parasite variety. They may harbor, shed, and transmit zoonotic parasites and parasites of veterinary importance for domestic hosts. Although wild carnivores are globally distributed and comprise many different species, some living in close proximity to human settlements, only a few studies have investigated parasites of wild terrestrial carnivores using non-specific techniques. Access to samples of wild carnivores may be challenging as some species are protected, and others are secretive, possibly explaining the data paucity. Considering the importance of wild carnivores' health and ecological role, combined with the lack of specific diagnostic methodologies, this review aims to offer an overview of the diagnostic methods for parasite investigation in wild terrestrial carnivores, providing the precise techniques for collection and analysis of fecal, blood, and tissue samples, the environmental impact on said samples, and the limitations researchers currently face in analyzing samples of wild terrestrial carnivores. In addition, this paper offers some crucial information on how different environmental factors affect parasite detection postmortem and how insects can be used to estimate the time of death with a specific highlight on insect larvae. The paper contains a literature review of available procedures and emphasizes the need for diagnostic method standardization in wild terrestrial carnivores.

Wound myiasis in a wild boar by Lucilia caesar (Diptera: Calliphoridae): First case and current status of animal myiasis by this species

The first case of myiasis caused by Lucilia caesar (L.) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) in a wild boar, Sus scrofa L. (Artiodactyla: Suidae) is described. The myiasis occurred in October 2019 in Southern Italy and the identification of the agent was based on adult male morphology. The wild boar had a wound on its right side, near the neck, which was largely infested by larvae. The ecology, distribution and current literature status about cases of animal myiasis by this species is also included.

A formulation of neem and hypericum oily extract for the treatment of the wound myiasis by Wohlfahrtia magnifica in domestic animals

Untreated, traumatic, or wound myiases can cause severe consequences to animal health and welfare as well as economic losses to livestock productions. For healing myiasis-caused wounds, disinfectant such as creolin is wrongly but currently used in association with insecticides. Though effective, creolin is highly toxic to the patients, is inadequate with respect to the repellent effect, and may delay the healing of treated wounds. In this uncontrolled study, the efficacy of the patented plant-derived formulation 1 Primary Wound Dressing© (1-PWD), composed of neem oil (Azadirachta indica A. Juss.) and the oily extract of Hypericum perforatum (L.) flowers, has been investigated. Forty-four domestic animals of different species suffering from wound myiasis lasting for up to 25 days, at different parts of the body, were enrolled in the study. No systemic or local antibiotic or disinfectants' treatment was administered. Larvae recovered on open wounds and adults reared from mature larvae were identified as Wohlfahrtia magnifica. All the treated wounds healed in a range of 10 to 32 days without further infestation. None of the recruited animals presented bacterial complications. Data herein presented indicate that the tested natural plant-derived formulation is able to manage the infestation caused by W. magnifica larvae and the healing process of traumatic infested wounds in several domestic animal species, without any side effect on the living tissue and without the need to use local or systemic chemical or other products.

Panthera pardus(Carnivora: Felidae)

Panthera pardus (leopard; Linnaeus, 1758) is the smallest of the 4 large felids in the genus Panthera. A solitary and adaptable species, P. pardus is the widest ranging of all wild felids, inhabiting rain forests, mountains, semiarid environments, and suburban areas throughout sub-Saharan Africa, the Middle East, and South Asia to the Russian Far East. Despite this distribution, P. pardus is listed as “Near Threatened” by the International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources and several Asian subspecies are listed as endangered. P. pardus primarily feeds on small to medium-sized ungulates, but has a varied diet including fish, reptiles, birds, and small mammals.

Traumatic myiasis by Wohlfahrtia magnifica in Italy

Seven farms, two in Central Italy and five in Southern Italy, were visited for the presence of larvae-infested wounds. Ninety-six (3%) out of 3129 sheep examined had a traumatic myiasis with a very high percentage of infested animals found only in a farm (10.5%). Wounds were mainly localized on the vulva and prepuce. Infested animals were restless, anxious, and reluctant to graze. None of the 10 goats in one infested flock had wounds, whereas a shepherd dog from another flock presented a wound on the ear. All the larvae and adults reared from them in the laboratory were identified as Wohlfahrtia magnifica (Schiner, 1862) (Diptera, Sarcophagidae). The cases presented here are the first clinical cases of wohlfahrtiosis in sheep and dogs reported in Italy, and indicate that this myiasis is endemic in this country. A wider epidemiological investigation on the prevalence, incidence and seasonality of W. magnifica infestation of Italian W. magnifica population/s would be useful to understand its geographical provenience and the likely risk for its spreading throughout Italy and other non-endemic areas.

Fleshflies in the flesh: epidemiology, population genetics and control of outbreaks of traumatic myiasis in the Mediterranean Basin

Although the damaging effects on healthy tissues of its developing larvae were first described in 1770, the fleshfly Wohlfahrtia magnifica remains a serious pest for the livestock industry. Wohlfahrtiosis, the severe myiasis caused by this fly, is a grave problem in terms of both the animal welfare and economic loss. This review highlights important aspects of the biology, pest status, epidemiology, population genetic structure, economics and control of W. magnifica and wohlfahrtiosis, with an emphasis on recent outbreaks in Greece and Morocco and fly population dynamics in the Mediterranean Basin. Potential areas for future studies on genetics, host tolerance, in vitro rearing, field behaviour and range expansion of the species are also discussed.

Molecular genetic analysis of populations of Wohlfahrt's wound myiasis fly, Wohlfahrtia magnifica, in outbreak populations from Greece and Morocco

Wohlfahrt's wound myiasis fly, Wohlfahrtia magnifica (Schiner) (Diptera: Sarcophagidae), is the most important cause of traumatic myiasis in the southern Palaearctic region. Larval stages are obligate parasites and the wounds caused by infestations are very similar to those caused by Old and New World screwworm flies. During the last decade, W. magnifica appears to have expanded its range to parts of northern and central Morocco, and to Crete, Greece. Specimens of W. magnifica were collected in Morocco and Crete either as larvae (preserved in 80% ethanol) or as adults (dry-pinned). Comparison specimens were collected in Spain, Hungary and mainland Greece. A DNA fragment containing the 3' 715 base pairs of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene was amplified by polymerase chain reaction from each of 132 larvae or adults of W. magnifica and the amplicons were directly sequenced and analysed phylogeographically. Twelve cytochrome b haplotypes were detected. All haplotypes from Morocco belonged to a lineage that included specimens from the Iberian peninsula, and restricted mixing of central and northern populations in Morocco was demonstrated. Cytochrome b haplotyping combined with an analysis of larval size provided clear evidence of multiple infestations of hosts in all geographical areas, with one quarter of wounds containing larvae from two to at least four females. More than 80% of specimens from Crete contained a haplotype predominating in mainland Greece and Hungary. Our survey indicated that wohlfahrtiosis was more widespread in northern and central Morocco than previously recorded by government veterinarians. However, the prevalence of wohlfahrtiosis was low (< 1%). The high genetic diversity of Moroccan populations is consistent with longterm endemicity, rather than recent introduction. Crete showed a higher prevalence of wohlfahrtiosis (< or = 15%) and less genetic diversity of W. magnifica, which is consistent with a recent introduction. The western and eastern Mediterranean lineages may have been isolated in different Pleistocene ice-age refugia, from which there has been limited post-glacial dispersal.