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1 July 2010 Optimization of Raccoon Latrine Surveys for Quantifying Exposure to Baylisascaris procyonis
Timothy J. Smyser, L. Kristen Page, Olin E. Rhodes
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Abstract

Raccoon (Procyon lotor) latrine surveys are an efficient and cost-effective method to quantify Baylisascaris procyonis exposure risk for intermediate hosts. Nevertheless, current methodologies may introduce bias by homogenizing scats collected within latrines and estimating exposure risk at the latrine scale. The objective of this study was to examine the potential for raccoon latrine size to bias estimates of risk of exposure when utilizing current methodologies that pool scats prior to analysis. We accomplished this by evaluating correlation of the presence of B. procyonis eggs among scats collected within latrines. Specimens were collected in southern Indiana during November and December of 2006. Raccoon scats collected within latrines exhibited no correlation with the presence of B. procyonis eggs. Accordingly, to eliminate the bias introduced by pooling scats within latrines, scats rather than latrines should be treated as the sampling unit for estimating risk of exposure for intermediate hosts. Further, evaluation of exposure risk based on individual scats has the potential to greatly reduce the time and expense associated with obtaining precise estimates of B. procyonis exposure risk.

Timothy J. Smyser, L. Kristen Page, and Olin E. Rhodes "Optimization of Raccoon Latrine Surveys for Quantifying Exposure to Baylisascaris procyonis," Journal of Wildlife Diseases 46(3), 929-933, (1 July 2010). https://doi.org/10.7589/0090-3558-46.3.929
Received: 10 March 2009; Accepted: 1 December 2009; Published: 1 July 2010
KEYWORDS
Baylisascaris procyonis
Indiana
latrine survey
Procyon lotor
raccoon
raccoon roundworm
zoonotic disease
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