Helminth Community of Wintering Greater White-Fronted Geese, Anser albifrons (Anseriformes, Anatidae) in the South of Ukraine
Abstract
Twenty-one specimens of greater white-fronted geese Anser albifrons (Scopoli, 1769) from the Odesa Region in southern Ukraine were examined using parasitological methods. All of the geese were infected with helminths, with nematodes present in 100% of cases. A total of 15 helminth species were identified, comprising six species of nematode, five species of trematode and four species of cestode. The greater white-fronted goose was recorded as a new host for four species: Echinostoma nordiana, Echinostoma sarcinum, Microsomacanthus paramicrosoma and Heterakis gallinarum. Four monoxenous nematode species, Trichostrongylus tenuis, Amidostomum anseris, Amidostomum spatulatum, and Epomidostomum orispinum, predominated in the helminth community according to their prevalence and abundance. Two congeneric species, A. spatulatum and A. anseris, demonstrated a negative interspecific association. Three species, E. orispinum, A. spatulatum, and T. tenuis, were found with a prevalence higher than 80%. In contrast, trematode and cestode infections were low, likely due to the absence of invertebrates, their intermediate hosts in the greater white-fronted geese’s diet during the winter season.
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