Parasitic infections of amphibians in the Pendjari Biosphere Reserve, Benin

Aisien, M.S.O.; Nago, Sedjro Gilles Armel; Rödel, Mark Oliver

doi:10.1080/15627020.2011.11407507

Cited by 3 publications

(3 citation statements)

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“…Besides E. alluaudi, other helminth parasites were also recorded (11 in New Bussa and 6 in Zaria). At the Pendjari Biosphere Reserve, located in the Sudan savanna of Bénin, [53] recorded 14 anuran species from eight families, which played host to 18 helminth parasites. In all, there seems to be some uniformity in the dominant parasite species in this biotope: nematodes and trematodes predominate in the three study locations.…”

Section: The Savannasmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…While records of limb deformities due to pesticide use have not been reported in West Africa, their effects on parasite prevalence and infection intensity in anurans are evident. In the Pendjari Biosphere Reserve, Bénin, where Endosulfan and DDT were applied to control cotton pests in the Agricultural Zone (AZ), their effect on the pattern of helminth parasitic infections in anurans was unequivocal when compared with results from the National Park (NP) and the Buffer Zone (BZ) [53]. For example, the prevalence of acanthocephalan cystacanths was higher in Phrynobatrachus latifrons caught in the AZ, while those from the BZ had higher infection intensity.…”

Section: Altered Environments Monoculture Plantationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The preponderance of trematode infections in the AZ was also linked to the immunosuppressive effects of pesticides [36], which made them more susceptible to trematode infections. Nutrient enrichment from fertilizer use and the resultant eutrophication were also thought to have led to increased algal density in the AZ, driving greater snail abundance and more infection in intermediate hosts [53]. Pesticide influence on parasites was not restricted to trematodes; it was also observed with nematodes [30].…”

Section: Altered Environments Monoculture Plantationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Ecological Scenarios and Parasite Diversity in Anurans of West Africa: A Review

2021

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This paper is a survey of the parasite diversity, prevalence and infection intensity in anurans in diverse ecological settings in West Africa. The settings included natural habitats (rainforests, freshwater creeks, Guinea and Sudan savannas), monoculture plantations (cocoa, cotton and oil palm), urbanized and urbanizing rainforest biotopes and polluted environments due to oil industry activities. The natural habitats had higher amphibian species diversity, moderate parasite prevalence and low infection intensity, showing a balance in the host/parasite relationship. These habitats yielded most of the monogeneans, among which were new species. The freshwater creek biotope had low amphibian diversity, but hosts from this environment harbored several parasite taxa, a situation attributed to a prolonged wet season, high environmental humidity and persistent breeding pools for insect vectors in this area. The monoculture plantations were characterized by high parasite prevalence but lower infection intensity. For example, in the Pendjari Biosphere Reserve in Bénin Republic, the Agricultural Zone (AZ) had higher parasite prevalence values, while the National Park (NP) and Buffer Zone (BZ) had higher infection intensities. Higher prevalence was attributed to the single or combined effects of vector population explosion, immune-suppression by agrochemicals, nutrient enrichment and eutrophication from fertilizer use. The lower infection intensity was attributed to the inhibitory effect of the pesticide-contaminated environment on the free-living larval stages of parasites. The adverse effect of pesticide contamination was also evident in the lower infection intensity recorded in the anurans from the cocoa plantations at Ugboke in comparison to those from the pesticide-free village settlement. Urbanization reduced host diversity and numbers and increased the vector population, resulting in unusually high parasite prevalence and infection intensities at Diobu and Port Harcourt and high prevalence recorded for Ophidascaris larvae in the anurans of Evbuabogun. Oil pollution in the mangrove community reduced both host and parasite diversity; infection intensity was also low due to the adverse conditions confronting free-living stages of parasites in their development milieu. The high prevalence values obtained for monogeneans (Polystoma spp.) in Ptychadena spp. from Ogoniland was presumed to have resulted from host tadpole sequestration and exposure to high oncomiracidia burden in the few hospitable ponds. Also reviewed is the phenomenon of amphibian paratenism, a strategy on which many helminth parasites rely on for their trophic transmission to their definitive hosts.

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Section: The Savannasmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Altered Environments Monoculture Plantationsmentioning

confidence: 99%