The Pine marten (Martes martes) and the Stone marten (Martes foina) as possible wild reservoirs of Toxoplasma gondii in the Baltic States

Toxoplasma gondii is an important zoonotic parasite that infects a wide spectrum of mammals. Moreover, its presence in wild carnivores is indicative of environmental contamination by the parasite. A total of 186 marten (152 pine marten; 34 stone marten) meat juice samples from Latvia and Lithuania were tested for T. gondii seroprevalence. Samples were tested for T. gondii specific antibodies by a commercial ELISA and antibodies were found in 121 (65.1%) samples. Higher prevalence (67.8%) occurred in pine martens compared to that of stone martens (52.9%). Adult pine martens had a 2.0 (95% CI 0.9-4.7) times higher odds ratio to test seropositive than juvenile Pine martens. In addition, a significant positive correlation (r = 0.75; P = 0.05) was observed between T. gondii seroprevalence in martens and the number of estimated Eurasian lynx as a possible definitive host within the game administrative unit. The present study suggests that the high seroprevalence of T. gondii in Pine and Stone martens could indicate a high incidence of the parasite in the intermediate and definitive host population and in the environment.