SHORT COMMUNICATION Retrospective serological study to monitor the health status of Apennine chamois (Rupicapra pyrenaica ornata) Alessia Di Blasio & Maria Luisa Marenzoni & Daria Di Sabatino & Armando Giovannini & Roberta Latini & Leonardo Gentile Received: 18 October 2014 /Revised: 30 January 2015 /Accepted: 3 February 2015 # Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2015 Abstract The Apennine chamois (Rupicapra pyrenaica ornata) is a geographically isolated subspecies of chamois currently living only in limited areas of Central Italy. It is included in the Red List of the International Union for Con- servation of Nature (IUCN). To assure long-term conservation of the species, the number of individuals needs to be increased creating a consistent and viable population. Accordingly, re- location for reintroduction programs is being planned. How- ever, this could lead to the introduction of infectious diseases. Thus, knowledge on the health status of the Apennine cham- ois is important for the management of this species. In the absence of existing data, retrospective investigation is useful. A serological retrospective survey on 119 Apennine chamois, captured for routine marking or reintroduction operations from 1990 to 2008 at the National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio, and Molise (PNALM), was performed to detect antibodies against pestiviruses, bovine parainfluenza 3 virus (PI-3), blue- tongue virus (BTV), bovine herpesvirus type 1 (BHV-1), Brucella spp., Chlamydophila spp., Coxiella burnetti, and Leptospira spp. Serums were negative for PI-3, BTV, BHV- 1, Brucella spp., Chlamydophila spp., C. burnetti, and Leptospira spp., while three animals in 1992 and five in 2008 were positive for pestivirus antibodies. Although the number of samples per year was often limited, inference to evaluate the infectious status of the overall population in the PNALM was attempted. Better planning of sampling activi- ties and a specific surveillance program for infectious diseases are needed, especially in a small and limited population like the Apennine chamois, in which reintroduction programs are considered strategic for conservation and risk factors, like sharing of grazing with wild and domestic animals, exist. Keywords Apenninechamois . Rupicaprapyrenaicaornata . Infectious diseases . Pestivirus . Wildlife sampling Introduction The Apennine chamois (Rupicapra pyrenaica ornata) is a geographically isolated subspecies of Southern chamois cur- rently living only in limited areas in Central Italy. It is at present included in the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN 2013) and considered a vulnerable species. Low genetic diversity, impact of human activities, illegal hunting, straying, and trophic and spatial competition with other ungulates, like red deer and livestock, have led to this situation. For these reasons, this species is protected by national and international laws and subjected to rigorous monitoring. Accordingly, hunting of this species is prohibited. To date, four distinct populations of Apennine chamois exist. The chamois at the National Park of Abruzzo, Lazio, and Molise (PNALM, n =518 chamois registered in the 2009 census) represent the first historical specimens. After recent translocations, they were reintroduced at the Majella National Park (n =more than 1000 chamois in 2013), the Na- tional Park of Gran Sasso-Monti della Laga (n =450 in 2012), Communicated by C. Gortázar Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s10344-015-0906-8) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. A. Di Blasio : M. L. Marenzoni (*) Department of Veterinary Medicine, University of Perugia, Via S. Costanzo 4, 06126 Perugia, Italy e-mail: marialuisa.marenzoni@unipg.it D. Di Sabatino : A. Giovannini Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise BG. Caporale^, Campo Boario, 64100 Teramo, Italy R. Latini : L. Gentile Parco Nazionale d’Abruzzo, Lazio e Molise, Via S. Lucia, 67032 Pescasseroli, AQ, Italy Eur J Wildl Res DOI 10.1007/s10344-015-0906-8