SHORT COMMUNICATION Dermatophytosis caused by Microsporum canis in Eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) P. Tizzani & M. G. Gallo & A. Peano & A. Molinar Min & C. Martínez-Carrasco Pleite & P. G. Meneguz Received: 17 August 2006 / Revised: 9 January 2007 / Accepted: 14 January 2007 / Published online: 22 February 2007 # Springer-Verlag 2007 Abstract Eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus, fam. Leporidae) has previously been shown to be a potential healthy carrier of dermatophyte fungi both geophilic (Micro- sporum gypseum, M. cookei, Trichophyton ajelloi, T. terrestre) and zoophilic (M. canis, T. mentagrophytes). In this communication, the first case, to the best of our knowledge, of a symptomatic dermatophyte infection in S. floridanus is described. Keywords Fungi . Zoonosis . Arthroconidia Introduction Dermatophytes (genus Microsporum, Tricophyton, Epidermo- phyton) are fungi with great affinity for keratin, the mayor constituent of hairs, nails and corneum layer of the epidermis. On the basis of their natural habitat, they can be divided into three groups (Ajello 1968): geophilic, anthropophilic and zoophilic. Microsporum canis is the most common zoophilic derma- tophyte affecting pets and can be transmitted from animals to man (Foil 1998). Eastern cottontail (Sylvilagus floridanus) is a synanthropic species that can be easily observed near urban centres where it can reach high population density. This lagomorph was introduced as a game from North America in France (1953), Italy (1966), Spain (1980) and Switzerland (1982), but it has become naturalised only in Piedmont, northwest Italy. In this region, over the last 20 years, it has been actively expanding both in territory and in numbers from west to east in the Po Valley (Spagnesi et al. 1999; Silvano et al. 2000; Tizzani 2000). Case description In December 2002, an adult Eastern cottontail found dead in Volvera (Province of Turin-Piedmont) was submitted to the Parasitology laboratory of the Veterinary Faculty of Turin to be examined because of the presence of dermato- logical lesions. It was male and in poor trophic condition with few fat deposits and a weight of 952 g. The necropsy showed multiple alopecic areas on the head and the neck, with some broken and frayed hairs and little evidence of inflammation. Lesions were not exudative, and moderate scaling and dandruff were present. On ears, nose and around the eyes, the alopecic patches were confluent and presented irregular margins, whereas on the neck they were annular and 1–2 cm in diameter. No other significant external or internal lesions were reported. Mite research by skin scraping and bacteriological culture on blood agar by a sterile swab gave negative results. The microscopic hair examination revealed the presence of arthroconidia surrounding the hair shafts Eur J Wildl Res (2007) 53:238–240 DOI 10.1007/s10344-007-0088-0 P. Tizzani : M. G. Gallo : A. Peano (*) : A. Molinar Min : P. G. Meneguz Dipartimento di Produzioni Animali, Epidemiologia ed Ecologia, Università di Torino, Via Leonardo da Vinci 44, 10095 Grugliasco (TO), Italy e-mail: andrea.peano@unito.it C. Martínez-Carrasco Pleite Departamento de Sanidad Animal, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de Murcia, Campus Universitario de Espinardo, 30100 Murcia, Spain