Dissertation Research: Host Movement and Disease Dynamics: Interactions between Monarch Butterflies and a Protozoan Parasite

9700916阿尔斯塔德在自然种群中，疾病传播可能受到生态、环境和遗传因素的影响。许多动物群体都有季节性迁徙，这可能会强烈影响宿主和寄生虫的相互作用。这项研究调查了帝王蝶，Danaus plexippus，和一种专性原生动物寄生虫，Ofreycystis elektrosCirrha之间的相互作用。北美三个种群的帝王鸟表现出不同程度的迁徙行为，这为研究疾病流行的地理差异与宿主运动模式之间的关系提供了一个独特的机会。对于这些人群，疾病发病率与宿主迁徙距离成反比。佛罗里达州南部的一个非迁徙人口显示100%感染，西部迁徙人口感染60%，而旅行距离最远的东部迁徙人口感染不到10%。这项研究将研究宿主运动行为、地点之间的环境差异以及与宿主易感性或病原菌毒力相关的遗传因素对疾病流行的种群差异的影响。这项研究将为保护帝王鸟提供重要的数据，近年来，帝王鸟在许多越冬地点受到栖息地破坏的威胁。它还将提高对寄生虫如何与宿主互动的理解。

9700916 Alstad In natural populations, disease spread is likely to be affected by ecological, environmental, and genetic factors. Many groups of animals have seasonal migrations, which may strongly affect host-parasite interactions. This research examines interactions between monarch butterflies, Danaus plexippus, and an obligate protozoan parasite, Ophryocystis elektroscirrha. Three populations of North American monarchs exhibit varying degrees of migratory behavior, providing a unique opportunity to examine how geographic variation in disease prevalence relates to host movement patterns. For these populations, disease incidence is inversely related to host migratory distance. A non-migratory population in southern Florida shows 100% infection, the western migratory population is 60% infected, and the eastern migratory population, which travels the farthest distance, is less than 10% infected. This study will examine how population variation in disease prevalence is affected by host movement behavior, environmental differences between sites, and genetic factors related to host susceptibility or pathogen virulence. This study will produce data important for the conservation of monarchs, which have been threatened in recent years by habitat destruction at many overwintering sites. It will also improve understanding of how parasites interact with their hosts.