Part III: Conservation and Management392
and white-lipped peccaries in different Latin American ecosys-
tems. Equally, antibodies against leptospirosis have been found
repeatedly in natural populations of both species during sur-
veys implemented in Brazil (Nava & Cullen 2003; de Freitas
et al. 2010), and Bolivia (Karesh et al. 1998) or in collared pec-
cary farms in Peru (Mendoza et al. 2007; Jori et al. 2009). Other
viral diseases (Aujeszky’s disease and porcine circovirus 2) have
been detected by molecular methods in free-ranging popula-
tions of both species in the Amazon (Paes et al. 2013; Castro
et al. 2014) and from collared peccaries in the USA (Corn et al.
1987; Gresham et al. 2002). To our knowledge, information on
potential diseases affecting the endangered Chacoan peccary
(Catagonus wagneri) are not described in published literature.Infectious Diseases in Asian Wild Pigs
Asia is the continent that hosts the largest number of wild pig
species (13 including wild boar), many of them represented by
reduced populations living in insular habitats. The phylogenetic
position of wild Asian pigs of the genus Sus is very complex
because various introductions and hybridizations are suspected
to have occurred over millennia. However, scanty disease data
exist for a limited number of species. Historical records suggest
that populations of the Indonesian bearded pig (Sus barbatus)
have been repeatedly affected as a result of rinderpest epidemics
occurring in cattle (Meijaard 2000). The pygmy hog of South
Asia (Porcula salvania) is critically endangered. Several out-
breaks of diseases such as CSF (Barman et al. 2012), salmonella
enteritis (Rahman et al. 2001), or clostridiosis (Shome et al.
2010) have been described in captive populations of this species
bred for conservation purposes and closely monitored.Infectious Diseases in African Wild Pigs
In Africa, data on diseases affecting wild African pigs are
scarce. Information is more abundant in the case of the warthog
(Phacochoerus spp.) and the bushpig (Potamochoerus larvatus),
but almost non-existent for the Red River hog (P. porcus) and the
giant forest hog (Hylochoerus meinertzhageni).
Warthogs can become infected by some pathogens affecting
domestic animals. They have long been recognized as the naturalreservoirs of ASF virus (Jori & Bastos 2009; Jori et al. 2013)
in association with soft ticks (Ornithodoros spp.). Warthogs
are also highly susceptible to FMD and can become naturally
infected through potential contacts with other infected species
(Arzt et al. 2011). Following infection, they are able to develop
lesions and excrete virus. However, similar to wild boars, their
ability to excrete the virus and to naturally infect other species is
lower than for other ungulates (Alexandrov et al. 2013).
Warthogs have also been often reported to act as spillover hosts
of bovine tuberculosis, when the disease has been introduced in
African savanna ecosystems affecting multiple species (Woodford
1982; Miller et al. 2015). Yet, their capacity to act as reservoirs that
maintain Mycobaterium bovis in the environment is unknown.
Despite their wide distribution and abundance, there are
few reports of warthogs becoming infected by other diseases
of pigs such as leptospirosis or brucellosis. Experimental infec-
tions have shown they are susceptible to CSF virus and could
become naturally infected (Everett et al. 2011), but CSF natural
infections in wild pig species have never been reported to date in
Africa despite some incursions of the virus.
Warthogs are well-known reservoir hosts of Trypanosoma
brucei rhodesiense (Kaare et al. 2007) and a preferred blood meal
species for tse-tse flies, becoming a significant reservoir of tryp-
anosomiases for other livestock (including DP) and for humans
(Thomas et al. 2013). The transmission between domestic and
wild pigs is more common in villages located on the edge of
protected areas where warthogs can become attracted by crops,
domestic waste or water (Kukielka et al. 2016). Direct interac-
tions with DP such as mating or fighting are not documented,
while indirect transmission of pathogens can occur around
common water or food sources, through the occasional con-
sumption of infected carcasses by either species, or through vec-
tors (such as Ornithodoros spp. ticks or tse-tse flies).
Warthogs and bushpigs are both reservoirs of several
Trichinella spp. in East and Southern Africa and the consump-
tion of their meat has been responsible for several cases of human
trichinellosis. While the transmission of this parasite between
wildlife and DP involves many different hosts, the cohabitation
of domestic and wild pigs is suspected to facilitate interspecies
transmission between African Suidae (Mukaratirwa et al. 2013).Table 35.2 Main pig diseases reported in published literature for wild African swine (Phacochoerus spp., Potamochoerus spp., and Hylochoerus spp.).Disease and/or causative agent African suid affected* Comment Reference
African swine fever virus WH, BP, GFH Subclinical infection Jori et al. 2013
Foot-and-mouth disease virus WH, BP Clinical disease Arzt et al. 2011
Bovine tuberculosis WH, BP Clinical disease Woodford 1982
Trypanosomiasis WH, BP Reservoir host Kaare et al. 2007
Trichinella spp. WH, BP Intermediate host Mukaratirwa et al. 2013d)
Classical swine fever WH, BP Clinical disease, experimental Gers et al. 2011
PMWS BP Clinical disease, captivity Woodger & Hosegood 2011
Porcine parvovirus 4 BP Metagenomic analysis Blomström et al. 2012
Torque teno sus virus BP Metagenomic analysis Blomström et al. 2012
Ebola virus BP No laboratory confirmation Lahm et al. 2007
*WH, warthog (Phacochoerus spp.); BP, bushpig (Potamochoerus spp.); GFH, giant forest hog (Hylochoerus meinerzhageni); PMWS, Post Weaning Multisystemic
Wasting Syndrome..03712:55:54