Prevalence and biodiversity of helminth parasites in donkeys(Equus asinus) in Iran

There are over two million equine animals in Iran, of which approximately 75% are donkeys. Despite this, very little is known about their parasite status and the impact of this on their work output. Usually, it is the alimentary canal, body cavity and liver that harbor parasites in equine species. In this study, 45 donkeys were examined at necropsy. The contents of the stomach, small intestines and large intestine were washed separately and examined for helminth parasites. Their livers were sliced into 1×3cm pieces, squeezed in warm water and examined for helminths. The skin, eyes and all other internal organs underwent asearch for parasites. Twenty-two species of nematodes were identified, which included one species of cestode, two species of trematodes and one species of gastrophiliid. The species included ascaridae(×1), atracidae(×1), oxyuridae(×1), trichostrongylidae(×1), spiruridae(×1), anoplocephalidae(×1), fasciolidae(×1) dicrocoeliidae(×1), gastrophiliidae(×1), strongylinae(×3), habronematidae(×3), and cyathostominae(×12). The most abundant group with regards to the number of species and their intensity of infection was Cyathostominae (small strongyles), in which Cylicocylus nassatus and cyathostomum terracantum ware the most prevalent and abundant species

کلیدواژه ها:

Helminth ، parasites ، donkey ، Iran