Clough Dagmar
Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology Unit, German Primate Center, Göttingen, Germany.
J Parasitol. 2010 Apr;96(2):245-51. doi: 10.1645/GE-2258.1.
Although parasites are important regulatory factors in animal populations, basic knowledge on their fauna in many vertebrate taxa is lacking. In particular, parasite infections of primate species have gained little attention. Here, I present data on the gastro-intestinal fauna of a population of wild red-fronted lemurs ( Eulemur fulvus rufus; Primates: Lemuriformes) monitored over a total of 8 mo during 2 consecutive field seasons in 2006 and 2007 in Kirindy Forest, western Madagascar. Using fecal samples for parasite analyses, I identified 10 parasite species, including 6 nematodes (Lemuricola vauceli, Trichuris sp., 2 species of Callistoura, 1 trichostrongylid, and 1 strongyloid), 1 anoplocephalid cestode, a dicrocoeliid trematode, as well as 2 protozoans (Entamoeba sp. and Balantidium coli). The population in Kirindy Forest had the highest prevalence and number of parasite species ever recorded for species of lemurs. Additionally, prevalence of some parasite species differed between the social groups studied. These findings lead to 2 conclusions. First, it is important to extend a parasitological study to several social groups of a host population, since groups may differ in parasite fauna as a result of minor microclimatic or habitat parameters, and, second, short-term assessments of lemur health might underestimate the real parasite burden.
尽管寄生虫是动物种群中的重要调节因素，但许多脊椎动物类群的寄生虫区系基础知识仍很缺乏。特别是灵长类物种的寄生虫感染很少受到关注。在此，我展示了2006年和2007年在马达加斯加西部基林迪森林连续两个野外季节对一群野生红额狐猴（Eulemur fulvus rufus；灵长目：狐猴科）进行总共8个月监测期间其胃肠道寄生虫区系的数据。通过对粪便样本进行寄生虫分析，我鉴定出10种寄生虫，包括6种线虫（沃氏狐猴线虫、鞭虫属、2种Callistoura、1种毛圆科线虫和1种类圆线虫）、1种裸头绦虫、1种双腔吸虫，以及2种原生动物（内阿米巴属和结肠小袋纤毛虫）。基林迪森林的狐猴种群所记录的寄生虫种类的患病率和数量是狐猴物种中最高的。此外，在所研究的社会群体中，某些寄生虫种类的患病率有所不同。这些发现得出两个结论。第一，将寄生虫学研究扩展到宿主种群的几个社会群体很重要，因为由于微小的小气候或栖息地参数，不同群体的寄生虫区系可能不同；第二，对狐猴健康的短期评估可能会低估实际的寄生虫负担。
