Italian Zoological Union
From 11 to 14 September 2024, the 83rd Congress of the Italian Zoological Union and the 34th Congress of the Italian Society of Protistology were held jointly in Pisa. As part of the ongoing collaboration between Federcaccia, the University of Pisa and the Tuscany Region, the results of two scientific works carried out on the Italian hare and on the European hare. This is the continuation of parasitological monitoring studies started since 2017 with the active participation of numerous Sicilian and Tuscan hunters (Grosseto), in a context of citizen science, i.e. active participation of citizens in scientific activities. Given the influence of growing factors such as climate change on the distribution of parasites and their interactions with host species, ongoing research is essential to understand the role of parasitic infections on the population dynamics of both hare species. Especially in the case of the Italian hare in Sicily, where, thanks to hunter-monitors, a parallel population monitoring program is underway promoted by Federcaccia in collaboration with the Sicily Region and the University of Palermo.
The studies in detail
In European Tuscan hares, the intestinal parasite Trichostrongylus retortaeformis is very widespread with a prevalence of 75%, while the cestode of the genus Andrya is rarer. Similarly, in Italian hares, Trichostrongylus retortaeformis is quite widespread in Sicilian populations, with a prevalence of 66%, but unlike the study conducted in the past, the cestode Andrya spp. has not been detected anymore. Numerous environmental factors (e.g. climate change) and human activities themselves (e.g. cultivations, fires, etc.) can interfere with the dynamics of these parasitic infections and research is essential to also understand the dynamics of hare populations. These intestinal parasites (helminths), in addition to playing a role in nutrient deprivation for the hare host, can also act as a vector for bacterial pathogens or can alter the delicate balance in the so-called intestinal microbiota (commonly known as intestinal bacterial flora or intestinal microbial community), resulting in serious health risks for the hare.
Genetic analysis
The genetic analysis of the intestinal microbiome (the genetic material of the microbiota), together with the examination of the gastrointestinal parasites of Italian hares collected in Sicily, was the subject of a second study presented at the Pisa Congress. This was the first study ever to characterize the intestinal microbiome in the Italian hare and one of the very few conducted only a few years ago on species of the Lepus genus. The microbial groups (Phyla) most represented by far in the Italian hare were Firmicutes (29,4%-70,0%) and Bacteroidetes (1,9%-55,5%). No differences were found based on the age or sex of the hares, but there are differences in the numerical composition of the microbial communities and in the Shannon diversity index of the same communities, with higher values in young than in adults. Further investigations are necessary to try to investigate the interactions between host, microbiota and helminths.
The participation of hunters
Thus opens a new chapter of study that sees, among others, the most motivated hunters, passionate about "hare hunting" and available to collaborate with the scientific world, as protagonists. For their training, on 5 and 6 September two additional sessions were held respectively in Palermo and Caltanissetta, which saw the participation of 130 hunters. The titles of the works presented:
– “Prevalence of gastrointestinal parasites in brown hare (Lepus europaeus) and Italian hare (Lepus corsicanus)”, by Flavio Vallone, Martina Tenuzzo, Claudia Vannini, Gianfranca Monni, Valter Trocchi, Giorgia Romeo, Fabio Macchioni (poster).
– “Analysis of the intestinal microbiome and gastrointestinal parasites in Lepus corsicanus (De Winton, 1898)”, by Martina Tenuzzo, Flavio Vallone, Claudia Vannini, Valter Trocchi, Giorgia Romeo, Fabio Macchioni (communication). (source: FIDC).
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