| Summary: | 碩士 === 國立臺灣大學 === 生態學與演化生物學研究所 === 107 === Taiwan had not found any rabies death case after 1961, and it was declared to be rabies-free. However, a first case of Taiwan ferret badger (Melogale moschata subaurantiaca) diagnosed as rabid case in July 2013, and also a rabid ferret badger biting case occurred on 23rd of the same month. According to previous research, the phylogenetic relationship showed rabies virus in Taiwan ferret badger was isolated by several geographical barriers, which including Da’an River, Zhuoshui River, Gaoping River and Central Mountain Range. Until now, epidemiology cycle and spatial distribution of rabies in Taiwan ferret badger have not been fully studied. Therefore, this study is intended to present the epidemiology trend during 2013-2018. We obtained the passive monitoring data of death case in rabid Taiwan ferret badger released by Bureau of Animal and Plant Health Inspection and Quarantine Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan, and also retrieved reported rabid Taiwan ferret badger biting cases from published news. We presented the trend of temporal-spatial feature in rabid death cases and biting cases by GIS.
Result shows the number of rabid death cases declined from the highest peak (253 cases) in 2013, reached a lowest number (43 cases) in 2016, and then re-raised to 110 cases in 2018. There were three significant spatial clusters during the study period (p ≦ .001), and the primary distribution area of rabid death cases was moving northward from the Chenggong Township in Taitung County to Guanfu Township in Hualian County. The center distance of these two townships is about 43 kilometers. The rabid areas have crossed Xiuguluan River in 2018, while Da’an River still acts as an important geographical barrier in central area of Taiwan. On the aspect of seasonal dynamics, rabid death cases mainly occurred in January; peak of rabid biting cases arose in February and July. These peak periods of rabid cases may be related to juvenile migration and breading season of ferret badger. Furthermore, this study integrated environmental factors to build a species distribution model of ferret badger. The model indicates ferret badgers prefer mountainous and forest area. Compare to distribution of ferret badger, distribution of rabid cases has lower average elevation significantly (p < .001). According to principle component analysis, distribution of rabid cases is linked to environmental factors for human activities. It is concluded that rabid cases tended to locate in lower elevation and near the human activity area.
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