European Hares, Lepus europaeus, Represent a Reservoir Host for Thelazia callipaeda in Romania.

ABSTRACT: Thelaziosis caused by Thelazia callipaeda is an emerging disease in Europe. Only two reports of naturally infected lagomorphs have been published so far. The aim of this study was to evaluate the status of the Romanian populations of European brown hares, Lepus europaeus as reservoir hosts for T. callipaeda. Between November 2019 and November 2021, the eyes of 326 L. europaeus carcasses were examined for the presence of ocular parasites. Nematodes were stored in plastic vials with physiological saline, followed by morphological and molecular identification. QGis 3.20 and EpiInfo^TM 7 were used for mapping and statistical analysis. Four (1.23%) hares harbored T. callipaeda infection, with a total of 84 nematodes collected (mean intensity 21 nemat

SUBMITTER: Cotutiu VD 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9693048 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature