Ecology eclipses phylogeny as a major driver of nematode parasite community structure in a graminivorous primate.

ABSTRACT: Understanding the relative strength of ecology and phylogeny in shaping parasite communities can inform parasite control and wildlife conservation initiatives while contributing to the study of host species evolution.We tested the relative strengths of phylogeny and ecology in driving parasite community structure in a host whose ecology diverges significantly from that of its closest phylogenetic relatives.We characterized the gastrointestinal (GI) parasite community of wild geladas (Theropithecus gelada), primates that are closely related to baboons but specialized to graminovory in the Ethiopian Highlands.Geladas exhibited very constrained GI parasite communities: only two genera (Oesophagostomum and Trichostrongylus) were identified across 303 samples. This is far b

SUBMITTER: Schneider-Crease I 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7566988 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature