Testing mechanisms of the dilution effect: deer mice encounter rates, Sin Nombre virus prevalence and species diversity.

Species diversity has been shown to decrease prevalence of disease in a variety of host-pathogen systems, in a phenomenon termed the Dilution Effect. Several mechanisms have been proposed by which diversity may decrease prevalence, though few have been tested in natural host-pathogen systems. We investigated the mechanisms by which diversity influenced the prevalence of Sin Nombre virus (SNV), a directly transmitted virus in deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus). We monitored both intra and interspecific encounters of deer mice using foraging arenas at five sites in the Great Basin Desert with disparate levels of species diversity to examine two potential mechanisms which may contribute to the dilution of SNV prevalence: (1) reduced frequency of encounters between deer mice, or (2) reduced duration of contacts between deer mice. We also investigated the relationship between deer mouse density and these mechanisms, as density is often predicted to influence both inter and intraspecific encounters. Results of our study indicate that frequency of intraspecific interactions between deer mice was reduced with increased diversity. Species diversity did not impact average duration of encounters. Density was correlated with absolute, but not relative rates of encounters between deer mice, suggesting that encounters may be influenced by factors other than density. Our study indicates that species diversity influences the dynamics of SNV by reducing encounters between deer mice in a trade-off between intra and interspecific interactions.