Diagnostic Stages of the Parasites of the Florida Manatee,Trichechus manatus latirostris

Abstract

Limited information is available on diagnostic stages of parasites in Florida manatees (Trichechus manatus latirostris). We examined 67 fecal samples from captive and wild manatees to define the diagnostic stages of the parasite fauna known to occur in Florida manatees. Parasite eggs were freshly extracted ex utero from identified mature helminths and subsequently characterized, illustrated, and matched to those isolated from fecal samples. In addition, coccidian oocysts in the fecal samples were identified. These diagnostic stages included eggs from 5 species of trematodes (Chiorchis fabaceus, Chiorchis groschafti, Pulmonicola cochleotrema, Moniligerum blairi, and Nudacotyle undicola), 1 nematode (Heterocheilus tunicatus), and oocysts of 2 coccidians (Eimeria manatus and Eimeria nodulosa).

Occurrence of endoparasites in wild Antillean manatees (Trichechus manatus manatus) in Colombia

“…Eggs of N. undicola , which are characterized by their peculiar morphology ( Fig. 2 D), have previously been reported from manatees in the USA ( Bando et al, 2014 ). In contrast to Bando et al (2014) , we noted that these eggs sometimes had two filaments at each pole.…”

“…Therefore, the manatee health status has to be monitored especially on the level of pathogenic infections. Concerning parasitic infections, earlier studies reported on several metazoans ( Beck and Forrester, 1988 , Mignucci-Giannoni et al, 1999 , Bossart et al, 2012 ) and protozoans ( Lainson et al, 1983 , Upton et al, 1989 , Borges et al, 2011 , Borges et al, 2017 , Bossart et al, 2012 , Bando et al, 2014 ) in manatees. Most of these studies were conducted on captive manatees or on carcasses thereby hardly reflecting the actual status of healthy free-ranging animals ( Beck and Forrester, 1988 , Mignucci-Giannoni et al, 1999 , Borges et al, 2016 ).…”

“…Moreover, reports on natural occurring Eimeria infections in manatees are limited and included merely three studies reporting on E. trichechi infections in the Amazonian manatee ( T. inunguis ) ( Lainson et al, 1983 ) and on E. manatus and E. nodulosa infections in Florida manatees ( T. manatus latirostris ) ( Upton et al, 1989 , Bando et al, 2014 ). In regard to our knowledge there are only two reports on N. undicola infections, both in the Florida manatee ( Dailey et al, 1988 , Bando et al, 2014 ). Therefore, the current report constitutes the first description of Eimeria species and N. undicola in Antillean manatees and thus extents their geographical distribution to manatee populations in the Caribbean wetland from Colombia.…”

New Technologies for Monitoring Marine Mammal Health

“…The Florida manatee is one of the most endangered marine mammals in American coastal waters, continuously facing demographic challenges due to anthropogenic activities and stochastic factors. Brevetoxicosis and papillomavirus are disease-associated agents that have been described in their populations (Bossart et al, 2002;Walsh et al, 2015), in addition to several parasites including trematodes, nematodes, and coccidians (Bando et al, 2014). Discovering the genetic details of their immune system is an important step in the development of manatee-specific tools for monitoring health.…”

Pulmonicola cochleotrema (Digenea: Opisthotrematidae) in Antillean manatees (Trichechus manatus manatus) from the North-eastern region of Brazil

“…All faecal samples and helminths collected were fixed and preserved in a solution containing alcohol, formalin, glacial acetic acid and distilled water. Afterwards, the faecal material was analysed through sedimentation and flotation techniques (Bando et al, 2014) and helminths were clarified in lactophenol, stained and mounted on microscope slides for morphological identification (Amato, 1985). Parasites were measured and identified using previous descriptions (Blair, 1981(Blair, , 2005Carvalho et al, 2009).…”