SummaryClimatic and ecological factors can influence the parasite load of a host. Variation in rainfall, body size, and sex of the hosts may be related to the abundance of parasites. This study investigated the helminth fauna associated with a population of Norops brasiliensis, together with the effect of host biology (sex, body size, and mass) and variation in rainfall regime on the abundance of helminths. Species of three groups of endoparasites were found (Nematoda, Cestoda, and Trematoda), with nematodes as the most representative taxa with eight species, prevalence of 63.2 %, mean intensity of 4.0 ± 0.58 (1 – 25), and mean abundance of 2.66 ± 0.44 (0 – 25). Nine helminth species are new host records for N. brasiliensis. The nematode Rhabdias sp. had the highest prevalence (53.3 %). There was no signifi cant relationship between abundance of the trematode Mesocoelium monas and host sex or season, although the abundance of this parasite increased significantly with host body size and mass, while abundance of nematodes was related to season and host mass. This study increases the knowledge about the diversity of helminth fauna associated with N. brasiliensis, revealing infection levels of hosts from northeastern Brazil.
There are currently 760 reptile species known in Brazil, from which about 70 are amphisbaenians with 25 species recorded in the Brazilian northeast (Vanzolini 2002; Gomes & Maciel 2012; Costa & Bérnils, 2014; Roberto et al., 2014). Leposternon polystegum Duméril, is a widespread species distributed in the Amazon, Atlantic Forest, Cerrado, and Caatinga biomes (Porto et al., 2000; Ribeiro et al., 2011). The diet is composed mainly by ants, termites, and coleopteran larvae (Barros-Filho & Valverde, 1996; Gomes et al., 2009).
Los anfibios hospedan una amplia variedad de parásitos, sea de forma temporal (hospedero paraténico), intermediaria o definitiva. Solamente un 8% de los anfibios en Brasil han sido investigados con relación a sus helmintos asociados, por lo que en este trabajo analizamos 20 especímenes de Rhinella jimi Stevaux, 2002 colectados en los estados de Ceará y Rio Grande do Norte, en la región Nordeste de Brasil. Siete taxones de nematodos se encontraron infectando individuos de R. jimi (Oswaldocruzia lopesi Travassos, 1938, Raillietnema spectans Gomes, 1964, Physaloptera sp., Parapharyngodon sp., Rhabdias sp., Cosmocercidae, y una larva no identificada). Todas las especies encontradas representan nuevos registros de parásitos para R. jimi, resultado que amplía los registros de nematodos para esta especie, así como aumentan el conocimiento de la diversidad de parásitos en anuros para América del Sur.
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