Although it may seem incredible, scientists have found that the presence parasite can do it Wolves who has it most likely leaders his herd.
parasitic infection toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) causes wolves are 46 times more likely to become leaders packs, found a study of 26 years of data on the behavior of wolves and a blood test of 229 wolves.
A study published in the journal Nature found that T. gondii can increase testosterone levelswhich, in turn, can lead to increased aggressiveness and dominance, traits that will help the wolf establish itself as the leader of the pack.
It has a couple important consequences. Pack leaders are the ones who breed, and transmission of T. gondii can be congenital, passing from mother to offspring. but it can also affect the dynamics of the whole herd.
The study explains that due to the group structure of the life of a pack of gray wolves Pack leaders have disproportionate influence in their peers and in group decisions.
“If lead wolves are infected with T. gondii and show behavioral changes… this can create a dynamic where the parasite-induced behavior in one wolf affects the rest of the wolves in the pack,” the researchers write in their paper.
How does T. gondii work?
T. gondii is one of parasites with the strangest behavior nature and degree of its effect on the host organism.
This microscopic organism can only reproduce in the body of catsbut it can infect and thrive in almost all warm-blooded animals.
Once on a different host, the individual parasite must find a way to return its offspring to the cat if it does not want to become an evolutionary dead end. And there is one creepy way to maximize your chances.
Animals such as rats infected with the parasite start taking more risks and, in some cases, feel fatal attracts the smell of cat urine and therefore more likely to be killed by them.
In the case of wolves, these T. gondii-infected predators may feel attracted to piss cougarswhich are cats with whom their territory sometimes overlaps.
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Source: La Opinion
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