Conference Agenda
Overview and details of the sessions of this conference. Please select a date or location to show only sessions at that day or location. Please select a single session for detailed view (with abstracts and downloads if available).
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Daily Overview |
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CP12.1: Sheep & Goats - 5 min talks Location: Lecture Theatre 2 Session Chair: Vern Bowles, The University of Melbourne Session Chair: Nichola Calvani, The University of Sydney | |
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“First frost, last frost” Updating current knowledge on the seasonality of Fasciola hepatica in the Southern Tablelands of NSW 1: University of Sydney, Australia; 2: Gunning Ag & Water Solutions, Gunning, NSW, Australia; 3: Melbourne Veterinary School, Faculty of Veterinary and Agricultural Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Vic, Australia Fasciola hepatica larval development, infection, and presence of intermediate lymnaeid snail hosts require average daily temperatures >10°C. Livestock producers leverage the seasonal pause between the first and last frosts to guide treatment schedules. Whilst conducting a drug resistance trial in July 2024, numerous lymnaeid snails were discovered when average daily temperatures were <7°C, challenging the foundations underpinning these schedules. We set out to update knowledge on the seasonality of lymnaeid snail populations in the region to refine current F. hepatica risk periods and inform new integrated parasite management strategies. Twelve sites across six farms endemic for F. hepatica were sampled bi-monthly during 2025. Collected snails were counted and morphologically speciated to determine the average abundance and diversity of susceptible hosts. Snails were visually inspected for F. hepatica larval infection, then confirmed with qPCR. One site significantly deviated from the historical seasonal pattern, recording the study’s highest abundance of lymnaeid snails (N = 240) during winter. The invasive Pseudosuccinea columella was most abundant in July at three sites. This study provides the first seasonal monitoring of the invasive P. columella and their increased abundance in winter suggests that the infective risk period for F. hepatica extends beyond the historical dormancy window. | |