Abstract

MARTINEZ-GUERRERO, José H.; PEREDA-SOLIS, Martín E.; ROSALES-ALFEREZ, Federico  and  HERRERA-CASIO, Héctor. Gould's turkey (Meleagris gallopavo mexicana) gastrointestinal parasites: abundance, distribution, prevalence and diversity. Agrociencia [online]. 2010, vol.44, n.5, pp.541-547. ISSN 2521-9766.

The wild Gould's Turkey (Meleagris gallopavo mexicana) is an important wildlife resource in the Sierra Madre Occidental in México, but there is little information on animal health. Therefore, the aim of this study was to identify parasite species, to know its abundance, prevalence and distribution, for which 21 gastrointestinal tracts (GIT) of the wild Gould's turkey (Meleagris gallopavo mexicana) were analyzed; the turkeys were adult males, from the Sierra Madre Occidental of Durango, México. The GIT were analyzed by segment and the adult parasites were recovered, identified and counted. The indices of specific richness of species to measure diversity were calculated, and the degree of parasitic aggregation was estimated. Organisms of three taxonomic orders were identified: Class Cestoda: Order Cyclophyllidea; Class Nematoda: Order Ascaridida; Class Conoidasia; Order Eucoccidiorida. All samples contained parasites, with 100% prevalence for Railletinia tetragona and Eimeria sp; the highest abundance (59.4%) was for Heterakis gallinarum, which is clinically important by being associated with the disease enterohepatitis. Species diversity was higher in the segments of the small intestine than in the large intestine. The distribution of parasites in the host was not at random for all genera found, suggesting that they have a specific ecological niche.

Keywords : Eimeria; Heterakis; Meleagris gallopavo; Metroliasthes; Raillietina; distribution; prevalence.

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