Functional connectivity for white-tailed deer drives the distribution of tick-borne pathogens in a highly urbanized setting
Rattachement africain : us, nz. Niveau de preuve : code pays fourni par la source.
Le résumé fourni par la source
Abstract Context As cities seek to provide more habitat for wildlife, there may be unintended consequences of increasing tick-borne disease hazards. In the United States, the Northeast is both highly urban and a hotspot for blacklegged ticks ( Ixodes scapularis ) and tick-borne disease emergence. Though tick-borne disease was once considered a suburban and rural problem, tick-borne hazards in urban landscapes are increasing. Objectives We hypothesized that multi-scale ecological processes hierarchically contribute to tick-borne hazards across an urbanization gradient. Urban greenspaces with higher functional connectivity to deer movement would have higher deer occupancy at the ‘ecological neighborhood’ scale, resulting in increased blacklegged tick populations and pathogen infection at the scale of within greenspaces. Methods To evaluate our hypothesis, we used circuit theory methods to model the impact of functional connectivity on deer occupancy, blacklegged tick abundance, and pathogen infected ticks across an urbanization gradient. We sampled nymphal ticks during their peak activity and deployed wildlife cameras to detect deer at 38 greenspaces across New York City and Long Island, NY from 2022 to 2023. Results We found that functional connectivity significantly predicted deer occupancy with cascading effects on abundance of blacklegged nymphal ticks and Borrelia burgdorferi infection. We novelly identified a threshold of functional connectivity in urban areas necessary for deer occupancy, tick populations, and tick infection with B. burgdorferi , to emerge in urban environments. Conclusions We recommend targeted tick-borne hazard mitigation along this functional connectivity threshold as part of urban greenspace management plans. Additionally, we highlight the importance of examining multi-scale landscape drivers of host, tick, and pathogen interactions.
Ce résumé expose les affirmations des auteurs. BNTIC ne l’interprète pas comme une validation indépendante des résultats.
Le contrôle bibliographique ouvert
DOI retrouvé dans Crossref DOI retrouvé ; titre concordant.
- Titre Crossref
- Functional connectivity for white-tailed deer drives the distribution of tick-borne pathogens in a highly urbanized setting
- Date Crossref
- 22/04/2025
- Éditeur
- Springer Science and Business Media LLC
- Type
- journal-article
Ce recoupement confirme des métadonnées liées au DOI. Il ne confirme ni la méthode ni les conclusions de l’étude, et il ne compte pas comme une seconde source scientifique indépendante.
Où se fait cette recherche
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Columbia University Department of Ecology pays non établi dans la noticeUniversité ou école supérieure
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University of Canterbury pays non établi dans la noticeUniversité ou école supérieure
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Cornell University Department of Entomology pays non établi dans la noticeUniversité ou école supérieure
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Geneva College pays non établi dans la noticeUniversité ou école supérieure
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EcoHealth Alliance pays non établi dans la noticeOrganisation à but non lucratif
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Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station pays non établi dans la noticeOrganisme public
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Washington State University Allen School for Global Animal Health pays non établi dans la noticeUniversité ou école supérieure
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NYC Bird Alliance pays non établi dans la noticeStructure de recherche
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School of Biological Sciences pays non établi dans la noticeUniversité ou école supérieure
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Mianus River Gorge pays non établi dans la noticeInstitution
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Department of Entomology pays non établi dans la noticeInstitution
Department of Ecology — Columbia University, University of Canterbury et Department of Entomology — Cornell University, avec 8 autres affiliations.
Une affiliation ne permet pas de déduire la nationalité d’un auteur.