No abstract

A cross-sectional prevalence study of gastrointestinal helminths in Danish poultry production systems was conducted on 268 adult chickens selected at random from 16 farms in Denmark from October 1994 to October 1995. The trachea and the gastrointestinal tract of each bird was examined for the presence of helminths. In the free-range/organic systems the following helminths were found: Ascaridia galli (63.8%), Heterakis gallinarum (72.5%), Capillaria obsignata (53.6%), Capillaria anatis (31.9%) and Capillaria caudinflata (1.5%). In the deep-litter systems: A. galli (41.9%), H. gallinarum (19.4%) and C. obsignata (51.6%). In the battery cages: A. galli (5%) and Raillietina cesticillus or Choanotaenia infundibulum (3.3%). Exact identification of the cestodes was not possible because of missing scolexices. In the broiler/parent system: C. obsignata (1.6%), and finally for the backyard system: A. galli (37.5%) H. gallinarum (68.8%), C. obsignata (50.0%), C. anatis (56.3%) and C. caudinflata (6.3%). The results confirm the higher risk of helminth infections in free-range and backyard systems but prevalence may also be high in deep litter systems.

No abstract

A cross-sectional study on the prevalence of helminths in rural scavenging poultry on six hundred adult chickens selected randomly from six villages in the Morogoro Region, Tanzania during the wet and the dry seasons, was conducted. The trachea and gastrointestinal tract of each bird were examined for the presence of parasites. All chickens were infected with one or several species of helminths, the average being 4.8 ±1.7 helminths per chicken during the wet season and 5.1 ± 1.8 during the dry season. A total of 29 different helminth species were shown in the trachea or the gastrointestinal tract. The following species were identified: Syngamus trachea (0.7% (wet season), 2% (dry season)); Gongylonema ingluvicola (6.3%, 17.7%); Tetrameres americana (54.3%, 60.3%); Dispharynx nasuta (0%, 2.7%); Acuaria hamulosa (8.3%, 19.3%); Ascaridia galli (28.3%, 32.3%); Heterakis gallinarum (74.0%, 78.7%); H. isolonche (18.7%, 5.0%); H. dispar (25.7%, 6.3%); Allodapa suctoria (40.0%, 52.0%); Subulura strongylina (3.3%, 1.0%); Strongyloides avium (0.3%, 3.0%); Capillaria annulata (2.0%, 0.0%); C. contorta (9.0%, 1.0%); C. caudinflata (2.0%, 4.3%); C. obsignata (8.7%, 25.0%); C. anatis (4.0%, 9.0%); C. bursata (1.0%, 2.7%); Raillietina echinobothrida (41.3%, 46.3%); R. tetragona (25.3%, 21.3%); R. cesticillus (8.7%, 2.7%); Choanotaenia infundibulum (0.0%, 3.7%); Hymenolepis carioca (9.0%, 18.0%); H. cantaniana (48.0%, 43.0%); Amoebotaenia cuneata (39.3%, 36.0%); Metroliasthes lucida (1.0%, 0.3%); Davainea proglottina (5.7%, 0.3%) and Polymorphus boschadis (0.3%, 0.0%). No trematodes were found. No correlation was found between season and prevalence, or season and mean worm burdens. Twelve helminths of the species recovered represent new local records.

Common frogs (Rana temporaria) were exposed either to third-stage larvae (L3) or to first-stage larvae (L1) of Angiostrongylus vasorum. Following exposure to L3, viable larvae could be detected in the frogs for at least 2 weeks. Following exposure to L1, the frogs developed viable L3 in their tissues within 30 days. In a test of the infectivity of these larvae, one fox was fed frogs previously infected with L3 and another fox was fed frogs previously infected with L1. On autopsy it was found that adult A. vasorum populations had been established in both foxes. Thus, it could be concluded that frogs can act not only as paratenic hosts but also as intermediate hosts for A. vasorum.

The helminth endoparasite fauna in four Arctic charr morphs, Sulvelinus ulpinu.p (L.), small benthivorous (SB), large benthivorous (LB), planktivorous (PL) and piscivorous (PI) charr, from Thingvallavatn, Iceland consisted of: Crepidostonium furionis (Trematoda: Allocreadiidae); Diplosfoniuni sp. (Trematoda: Diplostomatidae); Euboihrium sulvelini: Diphyllobothrium dendriiicuni; D. dilremurn (Cestoda: Pseudophyllidae); Proreocephulus longicollis (Cestoda: Proteocephalidae): and Philonemu oncorhynchi (Nematoda: Filariidae). The morphs exhibited distinctive patterns in prevalences and parasite burdens (mean intensity and mean relative density of parasites). SB charr had high prevalence and parasite burden of the eye fluke Diplostomurn sp. and none to very light infections of the other parasite species. LB charr had relatively high prevalence and parasite burden of the intestinal fluke C. furionis, whereas infections of the remaining parasite species were light to moderate. PL and PI charr had high prevalences and worm burdens of Diphyllohothriurn spp. and P. longicollis. PL charr differed from P1 charr in higher worm burden of P. lon.gicol1i.s and lighter burden of E. sulvelini. Prevalences of P . oncorhynchi were high in PL and P1 charr. Association of parasite intensities and age and length offish were investigated. The different infection patterns among the morphs agree well with their partitioning in food and habitat utilization, and confirm that there is a high degree of ecological segregation between the morphs. The results demonstrate the importance of ecological factors influencing transmission efficiency of parasites to the fish host.

The objective of this study was to demonstrate the occurrence of entomopathogenic fungi on Ixodes ricinus ticks in relation to the tick stage, engorgement and season. Ticks were collected from the vegetation, from small rodents and from deer. All entomopathogenic fungi found belonged to the Hyphomycetes. Paecilomyces farinosus and Verticillium lecanii were the predominant species. Other species, found only on engorged females were: Beauveria bassiana, B. brongniartii, P. fumosoroseus and V. aranearum. Eight out of 1833 ticks collected from the vegetation and three out of 269 engorged nymphs were infected with fungi. Thirty-three out of 149 engorged females were infected, whereas males and engorged larvae were not infected. Throughout the season, a significantly higher proportion of ticks collected in autumn were infected. Entomopathogenic fungi may have a significant impact on the size of the I. ricinus population, since females were the most frequently infected stage.

Moderate freezing, desiccation, and pH levels of 5 and 6 killed the Echinostoma liei egg immediately or after only partial development, and increasing salinity levels above 3.79 0/00 and temperatures of 33 degrees C and 35 degrees C reduced the developmental potential. Temperatures of 6 degrees C and 8 degrees C and maintenance of eggs in mouse faeces arrested the development of the egg, and increasing temperatures decreaseds the time of development from 40 days at 18 degrees C to nine days at 35 degrees C. Maintenance of unembryonated eggs for 14 weeks in faeces at 12 degrees C and 22 degrees C and for 20 weeks in filtered pond water at 4 degrees C allowed a subsequent normal development, while embryonated eggs maintained at 4 degrees C only retained an unchanged hatchability for three weeks. A miracidium/snail density of 10:10 in 18 litres of water gave rise to an average level of parasitisation of 21%. Increasing miracidium/snail densities gave rise to increasing levels of parasitisation but to a level less than expected. The first intermediate host spectrum of E. liei was shown to be restricted to the genus Biomphalaria, but species variability in susceptibility within the genus and differences in survival of infected susceptible species was also demonstrated to exist. B. glabrata (Puerto Rico and St. Lucia), B. alexandrina (Qalyub), and B. pfeifferi (Malumfashi) were found to be susceptible, while B. camerunensis (Kinshasa) was almost refractory. Increasing size of B. glabrata (Puerto Rico) resulted in increasing daily cercarial production, but resistance to infection with increasing snail size was also demonstrated to exist. E. liei cercarial infectivity to the second intermediate host snail and the subsequent metacercarial infectivity to the mouse was found to be independent of the species of the first intermediate host and of the age of the infection in B. glabrata (Puerto Rico) for up to at least 6 1/2 weeks after the end of the prepatent period. No obvious peak in cercarial shedding fom the host snail occurred during the day. Five species of the genus Bulinus and Physa acuta (Egypt) were found to be highly susceptible as second intermediate host snails, whereas three species of the genus Biomphalaria, Planorbarius corneus (Rabat), Lymnaea natalensis (Egypt), and Helisoma duryi (Florida) all had a lower degree of susceptibility. On the other hand, E. liei metacercarial infectivity to the mouse was independent of the species and size of the second intermediate host snail. Also, the infectivity of metacercariae encysted on snail mucus, in snails harbouring patient redial infections, and in clean second intermediate host snails was comparable. Metacercarial infectivity remained unchanged for at least 12 and 18 weeks, respectively, when encysted in living B. glabrata (Puerto Rico) or when maintained in freshwater at 4 degrees C. Metacercariae in dead decaying B...