Mycoplasmosis in wildlife: a review

Mycoplasma, the smallest self-replicating life-forms, are responsible for a variety of diseases in humans, domestic animals, insects, and plants. Although the exact role of these organisms in wildlife is not available, now it is increasingly recognized that mycoplasmosis is an emerging disease in many wildlife populations. As only scattered data regarding these are available, an attempt has been made to assemble the available literature. To our knowledge, this is the first review paper regarding mycoplasmosis in wildlife. The outbreaks of mycoplasmoses such as contagious pleuropneumonia (CCPP), infectious keratoconjunctivitis (IKC), Mycoplasma ovipneumoniae and Mycoplasma capricolum subspp. capricolum infections, and contagious agalactia in wild ruminants; mycoplasmosis in raccoons; upper respiratory tract disease (URTD) and Mycoplasma crocodyli and Mycoplasma alligatoris infections in wild reptiles; and house finch conjunctivitis are showing that the prevalence of mycoplasmosis in wildlife has reached an alarming level, thus raising concerns for the conservation of many endangered species in captivity and free-ranging populations. These also emphasize the urgent need for increased surveillance and control of mycoplasma in wildlife. Some control approaches that can be followed are prevention of the spillover from domestic livestock and birds, proper quarantine of newly received animals along with mycoplasma screening, isolation of affected and suspected animals, screening of mycoplasmoses before the release of captive animals into free-ranging population, etc. At the same time, the previous dogma that mycoplasma have strict host specificity should be reconsidered in the light of new findings.