A
parasite spread by cat poop is causing a big problem for endangered sea otters
in California, and researchers have finally figured out how.
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Sea
otters were nearly wiped out by the fur trade at one point, but they’ve been
slowly making a comeback thanks to conservation efforts and protection under
the Endangered Species Act. While they’re on the road to recovery the latest
numbers from the U.S. Geological Survey released last month shows they’re population growth has stalled, with the biggest issue
being that they’re dying in record numbers.
Scientists
believe the losses could be due to a number of factors that include a lack of
food, pollution, parasitic worms, toxic algal blooms and shark bites, but another threat to their survival is Toxoplasma gondii, a
parasite that only reproduces in cat species, including house cats. According
to the Sea Otter Alliance, an estimated 17 percent of sea otters are dying from a
brain disease that it causes.
While
scientists have known this is a problem for sea otters,
they didn’t know exactly how a land-based parasite was infecting them in the
water until now. Building on previous research that found T. gondii
infections were more common in sea otters who ate marine snails than those who
ate abalone or other foods, researchers from the University of California,
Davis started exploring the link.
They
found that the kelp, or seaweed, marine snails eat is coated with sticky,
invisible polymers — basically a nice layer of slime — which acts like a glue
that collects the parasite’s eggs, which the snails then eat as they graze. The eggs then get passed up the food
chain when the sea otters eat the snails. The results of the study were
published this month in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.
“Discovering
the role that these invisible polymers play in disease transmission in the
ocean is a tremendous step forward in helping us better understand and mitigate
the impacts of coastal water pollution on the health of wildlife and humans,” said lead author Karen Shapiro, a research scientist in the School of Veterinary
Medicine.
Continue reading at ENN affiliate, Care2.
Sea otter image via Shutterstock.