Bartonella and Hemoplasma Dynamics in Vampire Bats
Habitat fragmentation can have negative effects on wildlife populations, including implications for disease emergence and wildlife health. Bats have been recognized as pathogen reservoirs, and evidence suggests many bat species can be affected by habitat fragmentation. In order to assess temporal changes in pathogen dynamics in bats impacted by habitat fragmentation, I am comparing the prevalence and genotypic diversity of Bartonella and hemotropic Mycoplasma (hemoplasma) between vampire bats (Desmodus rotundus) in a large forest fragment and a small forest fragment in northern Belize across seven years. These fragments were previously part of one large, contiguous forest but have become isolated through agricultural clearing over the past two decades. I use PCR screening and general linear mixed models to test if the effect of habitat varies with capture year to influence the likelihood of infection; to identify additional key predictors of infection or pathogen genotype such as age, sex, and reproductive status; and to determine if these parameters influence infection status alone or by interacting with one another. |