Are sleeping site ecology and season linked to intestinal helminth prevalence and diversity in two sympatric, nocturnal and arboreal primate hosts (Lepilemur edwardsi and Avahi occidentalis)?

ABSTRACT:

Background

Various factors, such as climate, body size and sociality are often linked to parasitism. This constrains the identification of other determinants driving parasite infections. Here, we investigate for the first time intestinal parasites in two sympatric arboreal primate species, which share similar activity patterns, feeding ecology, body size and sociality, and cope with the same climate conditions, but differ in sleeping site ecology: the Milne-Edward's sportive lemur (Lepilemur edwardsi) and the Western woolly lemur (Avahi occidentalis). Comparison of these two species aimed to test whether differences in sleeping sites are related to differences in parasite infection patterns. Additionally, gender and seasonal factors were taken into account. Animals were radio-colla

SUBMITTER: Hokan M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6043982 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature