Strongylid infection varies with age, sex, movement and social factors in wild African elephants.

ABSTRACT: Comparing parasitic infection among individuals of wildlife populations can provide insight into factors that influence wildlife disease ecology. Strongylids are parasitic worms that infect the intestinal tract of vertebrates, and infection with strongylids can be approximated by counting strongylid eggs in dung samples. Here we tested for correlations between strongylid egg counts and 18 different individual characteristics, environmental and social factors in individually known wild African elephants. We counted more eggs in the dung samples of younger elephants and females relative to mature elephants and males. We also found that elephants spending more time outside reserves shed more strongylid eggs than elephants that were more often within reserves. Elephants that were less socially

SUBMITTER: Parker JM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10317646 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature