S Telfer

..Information from genotyping increased the estimated rate and scale of dispersal by three- and twofold, respectively, and hence represents a powerful tool to provide more realistic estimates of dispersal parameters...

..taylorii in wood mice density dependence was delayed. B. birtlesii prevalence in wood mice was related to bank vole density. The implications of these differences for species coexistence are discussed...

..This may reflect individual variation in susceptibility, potentially related to variability in the ability to mount an effective immune response...

..possibly reflecting the importance of flea exchange between hosts. However, even closely related species showed quite different dynamics, emphasising that other factors such as population age structure can impact on zoonotic risk...

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..In addition we found a negative relationship between B. birtlesii and B. taylorii prevalences, indicating that these two microparasites may compete within hosts...

..The possibility that the importance of such transmission routes may have been underestimated in 'vector-borne' infections more generally is discussed...

..This study provides compelling evidence for the importance of I. trianguliceps in maintaining these enzootic tick-borne infections, while highlighting the potential for such infections to escape into alternative hosts via I. ricinus...

..Although predicted survival following the appearance of a cutaneous lesion was lower than for uninfected individuals, this was not significant...

..trianguliceps, which may alone maintain endemic cycles, and exophilic I. ricinus ticks, which could act as a bridge vector and transmit infections to humans and domesticated animals...

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..An interaction between age and whether the individual was new or recaptured suggested that infected animals are less likely to become territory holders than their uninfected counterparts...

..We discuss the care needed when interpreting the findings of wildlife disease studies...

..This is the first demonstration of MHC heterozygote superiority against multiple parasites in a natural population, a mechanism that could help maintain high levels of functional MHC genetic diversity in natural populations...

..6. Hence, these analyses confirm that there is a delayed numerical response of cowpox infection to vole density, supporting the hypothesis that endemic pathogens may play some part in shaping vole cycles...

..Model results emphasize the importance of the interplay between seasonal infection and recruitment and suggest that our empirical patterns have a relevance extending beyond our own system...

..We highlight the danger of mistaken inference when considering parasite species in isolation rather than parasite communities...

..The suggestion of different modes of transmission in the two species is itself consistent with the apparent absence of transmission between species...

..6. This negative correlation between cowpox virus infection and field vole survival, with its potentially significant effect on population growth rate, is the first for an endemic pathogen in a cyclic population of wild rodents...

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..6. Breeding early in the year was most likely in females in better condition (high lymphocyte and red blood cell counts). 7. All the haematological parameters were affected adversely by high population densities...

..Hence, overall our results suggest that, in females, these cells may be important for reproduction and may have a role in inducing abortion when conditions are not favorable, while in males they might be a response to infection...

..The implications of both phylogeographical and population genetic structure are discussed in context with the conservation of water voles in Britain...

..When the model predicts quasi-periodic multiyear cycles it also predicts that seroprevalence and the effective date of onset of the reproductive season are delayed density-dependent, two phenomena that have been recorded in the field...