A standardised faecal collection protocol for intestinal helminth egg counts in Asian elephants, Elephas maximus.

ABSTRACT: The quantitative assessment of parasite infection is necessary to measure, manage and reduce infection risk in both wild and captive animal populations. Traditional faecal flotation methods which aim to quantify parasite burden, such as the McMaster egg counting technique, are widely used in veterinary medicine, agricultural management and wildlife parasitology. Although many modifications to the McMaster method exist, few account for systematic variation in parasite egg output which may lead to inaccurate estimations of infection intensity through faecal egg counts (FEC). To adapt the McMaster method for use in sampling Asian elephants (Elephas maximus), we tested a number of possible sources of error regarding faecal sampling, focussing on helminth eggs and using a population of over 120

SUBMITTER: Lynsdale CL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4501537 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature