title: Fatal attraction: vegetation responses to nutrient inputs attract herbivores to infectious anthrax carcass sites.
abstract: Parasites can shape the foraging behaviour of their hosts through cues indicating risk of infection. When cues for risk co-occur with desired traits such as forage quality, individuals face a trade-off between nutrient acquisition and parasite exposure. We evaluated how this trade-off may influence disease transmission in a 3-year experimental study of anthrax in a guild of mammalian herbivores in Etosha National Park, Namibia. At plains zebra (Equus quagga) carcass sites we assessed (i) carcass nutrient effects on soils and grasses, (ii) concentrations of Bacillus anthracis (BA) on grasses and in soils, and (iii) herbivore grazing behaviour, compared with control sites, using motion-sensing camera traps. We found that carcass-mediated nutrient pulses improved soil and vegetation, and that BA is found on grasses up to 2 years after death. Host foraging responses to carcass sites shifted from avoidance to attraction, and ultimately to no preference, with the strength and duration of these behavioural responses varying among herbivore species. Our results demonstrate that animal carcasses alter the environment and attract grazing hosts to parasite aggregations. This attraction may enhance transmission rates, suggesting that hosts are limited in their ability to trade off nutrient intake with parasite avoidance when relying on indirect cues.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, PO Box 1066 Blindern, Oslo 0361, Norway Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management, University of California, 137 Mulford Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720-3112, USA wendycturner@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Wendy C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Turner
authors.affiliation: Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, PO Box 1066 Blindern, Oslo 0361, Norway.
authors.forename: Kyrre L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Kausrud
authors.affiliation: Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, PO Box 1066 Blindern, Oslo 0361, Norway.
authors.forename: Yathin S
authors.initials: YS
authors.lastname: Krishnappa
authors.affiliation: Department of Wildlife, Fish and Environmental Studies, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Skogsmarksgränd, Umeå 90183, Sweden Centre for African Conservation Ecology, Department of Zoology, Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, PO Box 77000, Port Elizabeth, South Africa.
authors.forename: Joris P G M
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Cromsigt
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management, University of California, 137 Mulford Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720-3112, USA Genome Center and Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California, Davis, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Holly H
authors.initials: HH
authors.lastname: Ganz
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Namibia, Private Bag 13301, Windhoek, Namibia.
authors.forename: Isaac
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Mapaure
authors.affiliation: Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Namibia, Private Bag 13301, Windhoek, Namibia Etosha Ecological Institute, Ministry of Environment and Tourism, Etosha National Park, PO Box 6, Okaukuejo, Namibia.
authors.forename: Claudine C
authors.initials: CC
authors.lastname: Cloete
authors.affiliation: Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture and Natural Resources, University of Namibia, Private Bag 13301, Windhoek, Namibia.
authors.forename: Zepee
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Havarua
authors.affiliation: Berkeley Etosha Anthrax Research Project, Swakopmund, Namibia.
authors.forename: Martina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Küsters
authors.affiliation: Department of Environmental Science, Policy and Management, University of California, 137 Mulford Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720-3112, USA School of Mathematical Sciences, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag X54001, Durban 4000, South Africa.
authors.forename: Wayne M
authors.initials: WM
authors.lastname: Getz
authors.affiliation: Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis (CEES), Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, PO Box 1066 Blindern, Oslo 0361, Norway.
authors.forename: Nils Chr
authors.initials: NC
authors.lastname: Stenseth
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000881:Anthrax / Q000382:microbiology / Q000635:transmission / Q000662:veterinary*; D001408:Bacillus anthracis / Q000302:isolation & purification / Q000502:physiology*; D002102:Cadaver; D018397:Equidae / Q000502:physiology; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D009276:Namibia; D006109:Poaceae / Q000737:chemistry*; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry*; D013045:Species Specificity
chemical_list: D012987:Soil
keywords: anthrax; camera traps; disease transmission; foraging ecology; host–pathogen contact; parasite avoidance