An investigation ofEncephalitozoon cuniculiin the wild rabbitOryctolagus cuniculusin Victoria, Australia

Abstract

SUMMARYSera from 823 wild rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) collected from a number of geographic regions of Victoria, Australia over the past eight years were examined for antibodies toEncephalitozoon cuniculi, along with sera from 46 hares (Lepus europaeus) (Pallas) and 57 New Zealand wild rabbits. No sera were positive, implying that this common laboratory rabbit parasite is absent from wild rabbits in these areas. However, wild rabbits were found to be readily infected by the oral route with small numbers of tissue-culture-grown spores ofE. cuniculi. A possible explanation for the absence of encephalitozoonosis in wild rabbits is thatE. cuniculiinfection places them at a biological disadvantage for survival. The natural hygiene habit of wild rabbits may also significantly decrease post-natal infection.