Note sur l'ergot des Paspalum : un risque pour le bétail dans le sud de la France

Paspalum ergot : a risk for cattle in the south of France

A bovine toxicosis which had been known for a long time in autumn in the south of France has been identified. The agent is Claviceps paspali, which causes an ergot to develop on Paspalum distichum, a wild grass of tropical origin. The study of the conditions of development of this plant parasitic fungus gives better clues to explain under what conditions this disease appears.
Claviceps paspali, the agent of a specific ergot on numerous wild or cultivated species of Paspalum, is well known in sub-tropical regions to cause nervous ergotism in cattle, called «Paspalum staggers». Similar symptoms of staggering have been known in autumn for a long time by local stock breeders in the south of the Landes region (south west of France). We discovered in 1991 for the first time in France that this toxicosis was due to the ingestion by bovines of sclerotia of Claviceps paspali when grazing contaminated Paspalum distichum. This wild grass, presumably imported into various southern countries of Europe from North America, invades humid grasslands. In some rainy years, there are important attacks by C. paspali of this grass. In this note, we give informations on the distribution of wild Paspalum species in the south of France, on the biology of C. paspali and on Paspalum staggers, as described in the world and observed in France.