Understanding the dynamics and spread of African swine fever virus at the wildlife-livestock interface: insights into the potential role of the bushpig, Potamochoerus larvatus

Abstract

African swine fever virus (ASFV) is a serious animal disease of pigs, causing high mortality in domestic swine. In Africa, the presence of a sylvatic cycle involving wild pigs and soft ticks means that the risk of introduction of ASFV into domestic swine is always present. Although warthogs are considered the main wild vertebrate host of the virus in the endemic African setting, they are not the only wild African suids with a potential role in ASF epidemiology. The bushpig, Potamochoerus larvatus, is an elusive, nocturnal pig known to be susceptible to ASF, and with a natural interface epidemiology and serve as a link between the sylvatic and nonsylvatic cycle. This paper presents initial results from an ongoing study investigating the role of the bushpig in the epidemiology of ASF at the wildlife-livestock interface. African swine fever (ASF) is a fatal, haemorrhagic disease of domestic pigs