Public health and the urban gray squirrel: mycology.
From 180 gray squirrels (Sciurus c. carolinesis), 942 isolates of fungi representing 19 genera were recovered upon culture of hair-skin scrapings and toenails. Of the isolates, 170 represented known human pathogens and 142, squirrel pathogens. A human infection of Trichophyton mentagrophytes was derived from handling the squirrels. Skin lesions of seven squirrels were attributable to T. mentagrophytes and Mucor sp.
D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D005431:Florida; D005658:Fungi / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011634:Public Health; D012589:Sciuridae / Q000382:microbiology*; D012867:Skin / Q000382:microbiology; D014005:Tinea / Q000382:microbiology / Q000662:veterinary; D014249:Trichophyton / Q000302:isolation & purification; D014505:Urban Population