Historical Mammal Extinction on Christmas Island (Indian Ocean) Correlates with Introduced Infectious Disease

• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0003602
• Publication Date: 2008-11-05T01:50:38Z
• Authors: Kelly B. Wyatt; Paula F. Campos; M. Thomas P. Gilbert; Sergios-Orestis K...; Wayne H. Hynes; Rob DeSalle; Peter Daszak; Ross D. E. MacPhee; Alex D. Greenwood
• Keywords: Mammal; Extinction (optical mineralogy); Endemism

It is now widely accepted that novel infectious disease can be a leading cause of serious population decline and even outright extinction in some invertebrate vertebrate groups (e.g., amphibians). In the case mammals, however, there are still no well-corroborated instances such diseases having caused or significantly contributed to complete collapse species. A point endemic Christmas Island rat (Rattus macleari): although it has been argued its disappearance ca. AD 1900 may have partly wholly by pathogenic trypanosome carried fleas hosted on recently-introduced black rats rattus), decisive evidence for this scenario ever adduced. Using ancient DNA methods samples from museum specimens these rodents collected during window (AD 1888–1908), we were able resolve unambiguously sequence murid trypanosomes both invasive rats. Importantly, prior introduction devoid signal. Hybridization between was also previously hypothesized, but found examined specimens, conclude hybridization cannot account This first molecular pathogen emerging naïve mammal species immediately final collapse.