Endoparasites of the Siberian tiger (Panthera tigris altaica) |
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| Authors: | Tatyana V MOSKVINA Michail Yu SCHELKANOV Mariya A BEGUN |
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| Institution: | 1. Far Eastern Federal University, Vladivostok, Primorsky Krai, Russia;2. Federal Scientific Center of Terrestrial Biodiversity of Eastern Asia, Far Eastern Branch of Russian Academy of Sciences, Vladivostok, Primorsky Krai, Russia |
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| Abstract: | There have been few reports on the diversity and prevalence of parasitic fauna of the endangered Siberian tiger, which inhabits the territory of the Russian Far East. The present review attempts to summarize the information about the parasitic fauna of wild Siberian tigers, which includes 15 helminths and 3 protozoan species. The most prevalent parasitic species was found to be Toxocara cati, followed by Toxascaris leonina. Another commonly recorded Platyhelminth species is Paragonimus westermani, which causes a lethal infection of the lung parenchyma in Siberian tigers. However, the information about infections by this fluke in the Siberian tigers is scarce, although P. westermani infections pose a serious health hazard to tiger populations. The nematodes Aelurostrongylus abstrusus and Thominx aerophilus are found in Siberian tigers with an occurrence rate of 2.3% and 19%, respectively. The information on the parasitic infestations of captive populations of Siberian tigers is also presented along with the sources of infection and hazards for the wild tiger populations in their natural environment. |
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| Keywords: | helminths infection parasites protozoan Siberian tiger |
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