Sylvatic plague, caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis and transmitted by fleas, occurs in prairie dogs of the western United States. Outbreaks can devastate prairie dog communities, often causing nearly 100% mortality. Three competent flea vectors, prairie dog specialists Oropsylla hirsuta and O. tuberculata, and generalist Pulex simulans, are found on prairie dogs and in their burrows. Fleas are affected by climate, which varies across the range of black-tailed prairie dogs (Cynomys ludovicianus), but these effects may be ameliorated somewhat due to the burrowing habits of prairie dogs. Our goal was to assess how temperature and precipitation affect off-host flea abundance and whether relative flea abundance varied across the range of black-tailed prairie dogs. Flea abundance was measured by swabbing 300 prairie dog burrows at six widely distributed sites in early and late summer of 2016 and 2017. Relative abundance of flea species varied among sites and sampling sessions. Flea abundance and prevalence increased with monthly mean high temperature and declined with higher winter precipitation. Predicted climate change in North America will likely influence flea abundance and distribution, thereby impacting plague dynamics in prairie dog colonies.

中文翻译：

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环境条件对黑尾土拨鼠洞穴跳蚤的影响

森林鼠疫由鼠疫耶尔森菌引起并由跳蚤传播，发生在美国西部的草原土拨鼠身上。暴发可能会破坏草原土拨鼠社区，通常会导致近 100% 的死亡率。在土拨鼠和它们的洞穴中发现了三种有能力的跳蚤媒介，土拨鼠专家Oropsylla hirsuta和O. tuberculata以及多面手Pulex simulans 。跳蚤受气候的影响，气候在黑尾草原土拨鼠（Cynomys ludovicianus ）的范围内有所不同)，但由于土拨鼠的挖洞习惯，这些影响可能会有所改善。我们的目标是评估温度和降水如何影响非宿主跳蚤丰度，以及相对跳蚤丰度是否在黑尾草原土拨鼠的范围内变化。跳蚤丰度是通过在 2016 年夏初和 2017 年夏末在六个广泛分布的地点对 300 个土拨鼠洞穴进行擦拭来测量的。跳蚤物种的相对丰度因地点和采样时段而异。跳蚤丰度和流行率随着月平均高温而增加，随着冬季降水量的增加而下降。预测的北美气候变化可能会影响跳蚤的数量和分布，从而影响草原土拨鼠群落的瘟疫动态。