Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-2brh9 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-24T21:34:05.891Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Infection pattern of the spirurid nematode Protospirura numidica criceticola in the cricetid rodent Akodon azarae on poultry farms of central Argentina

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  01 June 2008

M.H. Miño*
Affiliation:
Departamento de Ecología, Genética y Evolución, Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Ciudad Universitaria, Pabellón II, 4to piso, Buenos AiresC1428EGA, Argentina
*
*Fax: +54 011 4576 3354 E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract

The nematode Protospirura numidica criceticola infects the stomach of Neotropical cricetid rodents when they ingest infected arthropods. In North America, prevalence values fluctuated, showing marked peaks in desert habitats, while remaining low in humid environments. The infection pattern has not been studied in South American rodents. In this work, yearly infection by P. n. criceticola was analysed in the South American cricetid Akodon azarae seasonally captured from July 1998 to July 2000 and in March 2001 on poultry farms of a humid region of Argentina. Seasonal occurrence of third- and fourth-stage larvae and adults was recorded. Seasonal population and community parameters of the parasite were calculated. The occurrence of larval stages was confirmed for the four seasons. Prevalence fluctuated between 0 and 36% and did not show a seasonal pattern. It was not related to the abundance of A. azarae (rs = 0.37) or to rainfall. In this humid region of Argentina, where food resources are diverse throughout the year, the omnivorous A. azarae may have a variable diet so that infection can occur in the four seasons. Prevalence values were not very high, in accordance with observations in humid habitats of North America. The infection was also characterized by low intensity, abundance and dominance. Only 3.8% of the rodents were parasitized with three or more specimens of the parasite, and that was only in autumn. It is suggested that rodents can not overwinter successfully with a heavy biomass of stomach parasites.

Type
Research Papers
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2008

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Antinuchi, C.D. & Busch, C. (2000) Metabolic rates and thermoregulatory characteristics of Akodon azarae (Rodentia: Sigmodontinae). Revista Chilena de Historia Natural 73, 131138.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barnard, C.J., Sayed, E., Barnard, L.E., Behnke, J.M., Abdel Nabi, I., Sherif, N., Shutt, A. & Zalat, S. (2003) Local variation in helminth burdens of Egyptian spiny mice (Acomys cahirinus dimidiatus) from ecologically similar sites: relationships with hormone concentrations and social behavior. Journal of Helminthology 77, 197207.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Behnke, J.M., Barnard, C.J., Mason, N., Harris, P.D., Sherif, N.E., Zalat, S. & Gilbert, F.S. (2000) Intestinal helminths of spiny mice (Acomys cahirinus dimidiatus) from St Katherine's Protectorate in the Sinai, Egypt. Journal of Helminthology 74, 3143.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Behnke, J.M., Harris, P.D., Bajer, A., Barnard, C.J., Sherif, N., Cliffe, L., Hurst, J., Lamb, M., Rhodes, A., James, M., Clifford, S., Gilbert, F.S. & Zalat, S. (2004) Variation in the helminth community structure in spiny mice (Acomys dimidiatus) from four montane wadis in the St Katherine region of the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt. Parasitology 129, 379398.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bilenca, D.N. & Kravetz, F.O. (1995) Patrones de abundancia relativa en ensambles de pequeños roedores de la región pampeana. Ecología Austral 5, 2130.Google Scholar
Bilenca, D.N. & Kravetz, F.O. (1998) Seasonal variations in microhabitat use and food habits of the pampas mouse, Akodon azarae, in agroecosystems of central Argentina. Acta Theriologica 43, 195203.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bilenca, D.N., Kravetz, F.O. & Zuleta, G.A. (1992) Food habits of Akodon azarae and Calomys laucha (Cricetidae, Rodentia) in agroecosystems of central Argentina. Mammalia 56, 371383.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Busch, M. & Kravetz, F.O. (1992) Competitive interactions among rodents (Akodon azarae, Calomys laucha, C. musculinus and Oligoryzomys flavescens) in a two habitat system. I. Spatial and numerical relationships. Mammalia 56, 4556.Google Scholar
Bush, A.O., Lafferty, K.D., Lotz, J.M. & Shostak, A.W. (1997) Parasitology meets ecology on its own terms: Margolis et al. revisited. Journal of Parasitology 83, 575583.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Butler, J.M. & Grundmann, A.W. (1954) The intestinal helminths of the coyote Canis latrans Say, in Utah. Journal of Parasitology 40, 440443.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Cabrera, A.L. & Willink, A. (1980) Biogeografía de América Latina. 122 pp. 2nd edn.Washington, DC, OEA.Google Scholar
Crook, J.R. & Grundmann, A.W. (1964) The life history of Protospirura numidica Seurat, 1914 (Nematoda: Spiruroidea). Proceedings of the Helminthological Society of Washington 31, 225229.Google Scholar
Derrick, P.I. (1971) The concept of ‘landscape epidemiology’ as it applies to endoparasitism of small mammals in selected habitats of South Willow Canyon, Bonneville Basin, Utah. PhD thesis, University of Utah.Google Scholar
Ellis, B.A., Mills, J.N., Glass, G.E., McKee, K.T. Jr, Enria, D.A. & Childs, J.E. (1998) Dietary habits of the common rodents in an agroecosystem in Argentina. Journal of Mammalogy 79, 12031220.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gómez Villafañe, I.E., Bilenca, D.N., Cavia, R., Miño, M.H., Cittadino, E.A. & Busch, M. (2001) Environmental factors associated with rodent infestations in Argentine poultry farms. British Poultry Science 42, 300307.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gómez Villafañe, I.E., Miño, M.H., Cavia, R., Hodara, K., Courtalon, P., Suárez, O.V. & Busch, M. (2005) Guía de roedores de la provincia de Buenos Aires. 100 pp. Buenos Aires, Literature of Latin America.Google Scholar
Grundmann, A.W. (1957) Nematode parasites of mammals of the Great Salt Lake Desert region of Utah. Journal of Parasitology 44, 425429.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Grundmann, A.W. & Frandsen, J.C. (1960) Definitive host relationships of the helminth parasites of the deer mouse, Peromyscus maniculatus, in the Bonneville Basin of Utah. Journal of Parasitology 46, 673678.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Healey, M.C. & Grundmann, A.W. (1974) The influence of intermediate host on the infection pattern of Protospirura numidica criceticola Quentin Karimi and Rodriguez De Almeida, 1968 (Nematoda: Spiruridae) in the Bonneville Basin, Utah. Proceedings of the Helminthological Society of Washington 41, 5963.Google Scholar
Lowrie, F.M., Behnke, J.M. & Barnard, C.J. (2004) Density-dependent effects on the survival and growth of the rodent stomach worm Protospirura muricola in laboratory mice. Journal of Helminthology 78, 121128.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mills, J.N., Ellis, B.A., McKee, K.T. Jr, Maiztegui, J.I. & Childs, J.E. (1991) Habitat associations and relative densities of rodent populations in cultivated areas of central Argentina. Journal of Mammalogy 72, 470479.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Miño, M.H. (2003) Caracterización de las comunidades de pequeños roedores en granjas avícolas de partido de Exaltación de la Cruz (provincia de Buenos Aires). PhD thesis, Universidad de Buenos Aires.Google Scholar
Miño, M.H., Cavia, R., Gómez Villafañe, I.E., Bilenca, D.N., Cittadino, E.A. & Busch, M. (2001) Estructura y diversidad de dos comunidades de pequeños roedores en agroecosistemas de la provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina. Boletín de la Sociedad de Biología de Concepción, Chile 72, 6775.Google Scholar
Miño, M.H., Cavia, R., Gómez Villafañe, I.E., Bilenca, D.N. & Busch, M. (2007) Seasonal abundance and distribution among habitats of small rodents on poultry farms. A contribution for their control. International Journal of Pest Management 53, 311316.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Morales, G. & Pino, L.A. (1987) Parasitología cuantitativa. 132 pp. Caracas, Fundación Fondo Editorial, Acta Científica Venezolana.Google Scholar
Quentin, J.C., Karimi, Y. & Rodríguez de Almeida, C. (1968) Protospirura numidica criceticola, n. subsp. parasite de rongeurs cricetidae du Brésil. Cycle evolutif. Annales de Parasitologie, Paris 43, 583596.Google Scholar
Rouaux, R., Giai, C., Fernández, N., Bianco, V. & De Santis, L.J.M. (2003) Stomach structure in Akodon azarae and Calomys musculinus (Rodentia; Muridae). Journal of Neotropical Mammalogy 10, 115121.Google Scholar
Sheldon, B.C. & Verhuist, S. (1996) Ecological immunology: costly parasite defences and trade-offs in evolutionary ecology. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 11, 317321.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Soriano, A., León, R.J.C., Sala, O.E., Lavado, R.S., Deregibus, V.A., Cauhépé, M.A., Scaglia, O.A., Velásquez, C.A. & Lemcoff, J.H. (1991) Río de la Plata grasslands. pp. 367407in Coupland, R.T. (Ed.) Natural grasslands: Introduction and western hemisphere. Amsterdam, Elsevier.Google Scholar
Stein, M., Suriano, D.M. & Novaro, A.J. (1994) Nematodes parásitos de Dusycion griseus (Gray, 1837), D. culpaeus (Molina, 1782) y Conepatus chinga (Molina, 1782) (Mamífera: Carnivora) en Neuquén, Argentina. Sistemática y ecología. Boletín Chileno de Parasitología 49, 6065.Google Scholar
Sutton, C.A. (1989) Contribution to the knowledge of Argentina's parasitological fauna. XVII Spirurida (Nematoda) from neotropical Cricetidae: Physaloptera calnuensis n. sp. and Protospirura numidica criceticola Quentin, Karimi and Rodriguez de Almeida. Bulletin du Muséum National d'Historie Naturelle, Paris 4° sér, 11, section A, 1, 6167.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Sutton, C.A. (1994) Studies of the nematode parasites of Argentine cricetid rodents. Gayana Zoología 58, 7177.Google Scholar
Zar, J.H. (1996) Biostatistical analysis. 3rd edn.662 pp. New Jersey, Electronic Technical Publishing.Google Scholar
Zuleta, G.A., Kravetz, F.O., Busch, M. & Percich, R.E. (1988) Dinámica poblacional del ratón del pastizal pampeano (Akodon azarae) en ecosistemas agrarios de Argentina. Revista Chilena de Historia Natural 61, 231244.Google Scholar