PARENT SESSION
Oral Session # 22: Pathogens, Toxins, and Disease I: Modeling ; Mammalian.
Presiding: J Foufopoulos
Tuesday, August 5. 8:00 AM to 11:30 AM, SITCC Meeting Room 201.

Contrasting effects of heterogeneous host density on emerging wildlife diseases, such as chronic wasting disease.

Forbes, Andrew^*,1, Ives, Anthony¹, ¹ University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI

ABSTRACT- Using computer simulations, we show that spatial variability in wildlife host density may have dramatic effects on rates of disease spread through a population. The nature of these effects varies greatly, depending on the mechanism responsible for generating differences in local host densities. In our model, diseases spread faster through systems in which spatial heterogeneity in host density is created by variability in levels of local resources than in comparable systems with uniform resource distributions. In contrast, systems in which spatial heterogeneity in host density is created by variability in local migration rates are not prone to this increased rate of disease spread. This model demonstrates the importance of considering variation in local density when managing wildlife and, more importantly, the need to understand the underlying processes responsible for variation in local density. The broad conclusions of this study may be of use in deriving management strategies for slowing the spread of emerging diseases of wildlife.

Key words: spatial heterogeneity of hosts, spatial models, wildlife disease, dispersal