RESUMEN
Purpose of Review: In Argentina, there are five non-human primate (NHP) species: Sapajus nigritus cucullatus, Sapajus cay, Alouatta caraya, Alouatta guariba clamitans, and Aotus azarae. All of them inhabit protected and non-protected areas and face severe threats due anthropization. We aim to summarize the information available about parasites and infectious diseases of these NHPs and suggest further research on primate diseases in Argentina. Recent Findings: NHPs of Argentina are hosts of several parasites and pathogens important for conservation as well as public health. Alouatta species are lethally susceptible to yellow fever virus, which makes them suitable health sentinels of possible outbreaks. For other primate species, few parasite surveys have been carried out. Summary: Assessing the presence of infectious diseases and long-term surveillance on NHP allow the development of strategies to help in the early detection of pathogens that may threat public health. Increasing the knowledge about parasites and infectious diseases and their consequences in NHP of Argentina is needed, considering a One Health approach.
RESUMEN
The development of agro-ecosystems in the pastures of the Pampean Region has substantially modified their structure and functioning. Many wild mammal populations in the Argentinean Pampas face habitat loss and/or fragmentation due to human activities, resulting in harmful genetic effects. The screaming hairy armadillo (Chaetophractus vellerosus) is a species considered an indicator of the state of preservation of the environments it inhabits. However, very little information is available about its mating system in the wild. In this sense, an isolated population of the screaming hairy armadillo in the northeast of Buenos Aires Province, which is separated from the main distribution area of the species by about 500 km, requires special attention. Genetic studies that analyzed social behavior and mating systems in Xenarthra are scarce but necessary to establish conservation actions for the isolated screaming hairy armadillo population under study. Thus, we analyzed the existence of a possible social organization in the species, together with its mating system, using a set of previously characterized microsatellites. Our results showed a complex scenario for the dispersal and mating system in this C. vellerosus population. Males disperse and females have a philopatric tendency with some degree of dispersal. This strategy, in combination with a polygynous-polyandrous mating system, could enhance genetic variability in this small and isolated population. In addition, no evidence of social organization was found.
