Challenges of copro-parasitological surveys in wild Iberian ibex (Capra pyrenaica) populations addressed through a combination of molecular and statistical tools.

ABSTRACT: Copro-parasitological surveys in wildlife face challenges due to the secretive nature of many species and the unknown performance of the diagnostic tests employed. To overcome these issues, we used a combination of hierarchical models (site-occupancy and N-mixture models) applied to copro-parasitological data obtained from fecal samples assigned to the host species by molecular methods in the Iberian ibex in north-western Iberian Peninsula. The aims were to compare the performance of four diagnostic tests (Mini-FLOTAC, McMaster, Willis flotation, and natural sedimentation) and to use this methodological approach (molecular analysis with hierarchical models) to better estimate positivity proportion and shedding intensity in a wild ibex population. Pooled fecal samples were collected, and th

SUBMITTER: Fontoura-Goncalves C 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10243152 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature