Invasive Species Compendium

Detailed coverage of invasive species threatening livelihoods and the environment worldwide

Datasheet

myxoma virus

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Datasheet

myxoma virus

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Summary

  • Last modified
  • 21 November 2019
  • Datasheet Type(s)
  • Invasive Species
  • Preferred Scientific Name
  • myxoma virus
  • Taxonomic Tree
  • Domain: Virus
  •   Group: "ssDNA viruses"
  •     Group: "DNA viruses"
  •       Family: Poxviridae
  •         Subfamily: Chordopoxvirinae
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    Compendia
    CAB International
    Wallingford
    Oxfordshire
    OX10 8DE
    UK
    compend@cabi.org
  • Distribution map More information

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Identity

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Preferred Scientific Name

  • myxoma virus

Taxonomic Tree

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  • Domain: Virus
  •     Group: "ssDNA viruses"
  •         Group: "DNA viruses"
  •             Family: Poxviridae
  •                 Subfamily: Chordopoxvirinae
  •                     Genus: Leporipoxvirus
  •                         Species: myxoma virus

Diseases Table

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myxomatosis

Distribution Table

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The distribution in this summary table is based on all the information available. When several references are cited, they may give conflicting information on the status. Further details may be available for individual references in the Distribution Table Details section which can be selected by going to Generate Report.

Last updated: 07 Jan 2022
Continent/Country/Region Distribution Last Reported Origin First Reported Invasive Reference Notes

Africa

AlgeriaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
AngolaPresent
BotswanaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2018
BurundiAbsentJul-Dec-2018
Cabo VerdeAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
Central African RepublicAbsentJul-Dec-2019
Congo, Democratic Republic of theAbsentJul-Dec-2019
Côte d'IvoireAbsent, No presence record(s)
DjiboutiAbsentJul-Dec-2019
EgyptAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
EritreaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
EswatiniAbsent, No presence record(s)
EthiopiaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2018
GhanaAbsentJan-Jun-2019
GuineaAbsent, No presence record(s)
KenyaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
LesothoAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2020
LiberiaAbsentJul-Dec-2018
LibyaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
MadagascarAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
MalawiAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2018
MauritiusAbsentJul-Dec-2019
MayotteAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
MoroccoAbsent, No presence record(s)
MozambiqueAbsentJul-Dec-2019
NamibiaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
NigerAbsentJul-Dec-2019
NigeriaAbsent, No presence record(s)
RéunionAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
Saint HelenaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
SenegalAbsentJul-Dec-2019
SeychellesAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2018
Sierra LeoneAbsentJan-Jun-2018
SomaliaAbsentJul-Dec-2020
South AfricaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
SudanAbsentJul-Dec-2019
TogoAbsentJul-Dec-2019
TunisiaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
ZimbabweAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019

Asia

ArmeniaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
AzerbaijanAbsentJul-Dec-2019
BahrainAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2020
BangladeshAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2020
BhutanAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2020
BruneiAbsent, No presence record(s)
ChinaPresentPresent based on regional distribution.
GeorgiaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
Hong KongPresent
IndiaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
IndonesiaAbsent, No presence record(s)
IranAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
IraqAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
IsraelAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2020
JapanAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2020
JordanAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2018
KazakhstanAbsentJul-Dec-2019
KuwaitAbsentJan-Jun-2019
KyrgyzstanAbsentJan-Jun-2019
LaosAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
LebanonAbsent, No presence record(s)
MalaysiaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
-Peninsular MalaysiaAbsent, No presence record(s)
-SabahAbsent, No presence record(s)
-SarawakAbsent, No presence record(s)
MaldivesAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
MongoliaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
NepalAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
North KoreaAbsent, No presence record(s)
OmanAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
PalestineAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
PhilippinesAbsent, No presence record(s)
QatarAbsentJul-Dec-2019
Saudi ArabiaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2020
SingaporeAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
South KoreaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
Sri LankaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2018
SyriaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
TaiwanAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
TajikistanAbsentJan-Jun-2019
ThailandAbsentJan-Jun-2020
TurkmenistanAbsentJan-Jun-2019
United Arab EmiratesAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2020
UzbekistanAbsentJul-Dec-2019
VietnamAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019

Europe

AndorraAbsentJul-Dec-2019
BelarusAbsentJul-Dec-2019
BelgiumAbsentJul-Dec-2019
Bosnia and HerzegovinaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
BulgariaAbsentJan-Jun-2019
CroatiaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
CyprusAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
CzechiaPresentJul-Dec-2019
DenmarkAbsentJan-Jun-2019
EstoniaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
Faroe IslandsAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2018
FinlandPresentJul-Dec-2020
FrancePresentJul-Dec-2019
GermanyPresentJul-Dec-2019
GreeceAbsentJan-Jun-2018
HungaryAbsentJul-Dec-2019
IcelandAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
IrelandPresentJul-Dec-2019
Isle of ManPresent
ItalyPresent, LocalizedJul-Dec-2020
JerseyPresent
LatviaAbsentJul-Dec-2020
LiechtensteinAbsentJul-Dec-2019
LithuaniaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
LuxembourgAbsent, No presence record(s)
MaltaPresentJan-Jun-2019
MoldovaAbsentJan-Jun-2020
MontenegroAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
NetherlandsPresentJul-Dec-2019; in wild animals only; suspected in domestic animals
North MacedoniaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
NorwayAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
PolandAbsentJan-Jun-2019
PortugalPresentJul-Dec-2020; in wild animals only
RomaniaAbsentJul-Dec-2018
RussiaAbsentJan-Jun-2020
San MarinoAbsentJan-Jun-2019
SerbiaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
SlovakiaPresentJul-Dec-2020
SloveniaAbsentJul-Dec-2018
SpainPresentJul-Dec-2020
SwedenPresentJul-Dec-2020; in wild animals only
SwitzerlandPresentJul-Dec-2020
UkraineAbsentJul-Dec-2020
United KingdomPresentJul-Dec-2019
-Northern IrelandPresent

North America

BahamasAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2018
BarbadosAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2020
BelizeAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
BermudaAbsent, No presence record(s)
British Virgin IslandsAbsent, No presence record(s)
CanadaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
Cayman IslandsAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
Costa RicaPresentJul-Dec-2019
CubaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
CuraçaoAbsentJan-Jun-2019
DominicaAbsent, No presence record(s)
Dominican RepublicAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
El SalvadorAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
GreenlandAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2018
GuatemalaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
HaitiAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
HondurasAbsent, No presence record(s)
JamaicaAbsentJul-Dec-2018
MartiniqueAbsent, No presence record(s)
MexicoAbsentJul-Dec-2019
NicaraguaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
Saint Kitts and NevisAbsent, No presence record(s)
Saint LuciaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2018
Saint Vincent and the GrenadinesAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
Trinidad and TobagoAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2018
United StatesPresent, LocalizedJul-Dec-2019

Oceania

AustraliaPresentJul-Dec-2019
Cook IslandsAbsentJan-Jun-2019
Federated States of MicronesiaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
FijiAbsentJan-Jun-2019
French PolynesiaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
KiribatiAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2018
Marshall IslandsAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
New CaledoniaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
New ZealandAbsentJul-Dec-2019
PalauAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2020
SamoaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
Timor-LesteAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2018
TongaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
VanuatuAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019

South America

ArgentinaPresentJul-Dec-2019
BoliviaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
BrazilAbsentJul-Dec-2019
ChileAbsentJan-Jun-2019
ColombiaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
Falkland IslandsAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2019
French GuianaAbsentJul-Dec-2019
GuyanaAbsent, No presence record(s)Jul-Dec-2018
ParaguayPresent
PeruAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
SurinameAbsent, No presence record(s)Jan-Jun-2019
UruguayAbsentJul-Dec-2019
VenezuelaAbsentJan-Jun-2019

Pathogen Characteristics

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Myxoma virus (MYXV) is a member of the genus Leporipoxvirus in the family Poxviridae. MYXV infects only lagomorphs. While it causes only mild disease in its natural hosts, American rabbits of the genus Sylvilagus, in European rabbits (Oryctolagus cuniculus) it causes serious disease (myxomatosis) that can result in 100% mortality (Fenner and Ratcliffe, 1965, Fenner, 1994). Following the introduction of MYXV to control wild rabbit populations in Australia (in 1950) and France (in 1952), MYXV now has a worldwide distribution (Fenner and Fantini, 1999).

MYXV contains a very large linear double-stranded DNA genome encoding 171 unique genes. The entire genomes of the South American strain, Lausanne (Cameron et al., 1999) and the North American strain MSW (Labudovic et al., 2004) have been sequenced. The strains introduced into Europe and Australia are South American in origin. The evolutionary process of MYXV is characterised by an unusually high nucleotide substitution rate for a double-stranded DNA virus, frequent changes in virulence and a marked ability to spread (Bertagnoi and Marchandeau, 2015).

Myxomatosis is on the list of diseases notifiable to the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE). For more information, see the website: www.oie.int.

Vectors and Intermediate Hosts

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VectorSourceReferenceGroupDistribution
Aedes caspiusMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0Insect
Aedes detritusMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0Insect
Aedes geniculatusMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0Insect
Aedes rusticusMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0Insect
Aedes vexans vexansMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0Insect
Amiota variegataMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0
Anopheles annulipesMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0Insect
Anopheles maculipennisMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0Insect
Boophilus annulatusMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0Tick
Culex pipiens pipiensMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0Insect
Culiseta annulataMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0
Culiseta subochreaMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0
Dermacentor marginatusMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0Tick
Haemaphysalis concinnaMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0
Haemaphysalis punctataMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0
Haematopota italicaMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0
Ixodes acuminatusMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0Tick
Ixodes ricinusMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0Tick
Lipoptena cerviMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0
Psoroptes cuniculiMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0
Rhipicephalus bursaMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0Tick
Rhipicephalus pusillusMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0Tick
Sarcoptes scabieiMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0
Spilopsyllus cuniculiMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0
Uranotaenia unguiculataMINED DATA; 16/11/01 14:00:0

References

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Bertagnoli S; Marchandeau S, 2015. Myxomatosis. Revue Scientifique et Technique - Office International des Épizooties, 34(2):539-547 (Fr), 549-556 (En). http://www.oie.int/publications-and-documentation/scientific-and-technical-review-free-access/list-of-issues/

Cameron C; Hota-Mitchell S; Chen Ling; Barrett J; Cao JingXin; Macaulay C; Willer D; Evans D; McFadden G, 1999. The complete DNA sequence of myxoma virus. Virology (New York), 264(2):298-318.

Fenner F, 1994. Myxoma virus. Virus infections of rodents and lagomorphs [ed. by Osterhaus, A. D. M. E.]. Amsterdam, Netherlands: Elsevier Science Publishers, 59-70.

Fenner F; Fantini B, 1999. Biological control of vertebrate pests: the history of myxomatosis, an experiment in evolution. Wallingford, UK: CABI Publishing, xii + 339 pp.

Fenner F; Ratcliffe FN, 1965. Myxomatosis. Cambridge: University Press, xiv + 379 pp.

Labudovic A; Perkins H; Leeuwen Bvan; Kerr P, 2004. Sequence mapping of the Californian MSW strain of Myxoma virus. Archives of Virology, 149(3):553-570.

OIE Handistatus, 2002. World Animal Health Publication and Handistatus II (dataset for 2001). Paris, France: Office International des Epizooties.

OIE Handistatus, 2003. World Animal Health Publication and Handistatus II (dataset for 2002). Paris, France: Office International des Epizooties.

OIE Handistatus, 2004. World Animal Health Publication and Handistatus II (data set for 2003). Paris, France: Office International des Epizooties.

OIE Handistatus, 2005. World Animal Health Publication and Handistatus II (data set for 2004). Paris, France: Office International des Epizooties.

Distribution References

CABI, Undated. CABI Compendium: Status inferred from regional distribution. Wallingford, UK: CABI

OIE Handistatus, 2005. World Animal Health Publication and Handistatus II (dataset for 2004)., Paris, France: Office International des Epizooties.

OIE, 2018. World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS): Jul-Dec. In: OIE-WAHIS Platform, Paris, France: OIE (World Organisation for Animal Health). unpaginated. https://wahis.oie.int/

OIE, 2018a. World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS): Jan-Jun. In: OIE-WAHIS Platform, Paris, France: OIE (World Organisation for Animal Health). unpaginated. https://wahis.oie.int

OIE, 2019. World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS): Jul-Dec. In: OIE-WAHIS Platform, Paris, France: OIE (World Organisation for Animal Health). unpaginated. https://wahis.oie.int/

OIE, 2019a. World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS): Jan-Jun. In: OIE-WAHIS Platform, Paris, France: OIE (World Organisation for Animal Health). unpaginated. https://wahis.oie.int/

OIE, 2020. World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS): Jul-Dec. In: OIE-WAHIS Platform, Paris, France: OIE (World Organisation for Animal Health). unpaginated. https://wahis.oie.int/

OIE, 2020a. World Animal Health Information System (WAHIS). Jan-Jun. In: OIE-WAHIS Platform, Paris, France: OIE (World Organisation for Animal Health). unpaginated. https://wahis.oie.int/

Distribution Maps

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