Apparent absence of Cryptosporidium, Giardia and Toxoplasma gondii in three species of penguins along the Antarctic Peninsula

Abstract We carried out a study to investigate the presence of some protozoan parasites ( Cryptosporidium sp., Giardia sp., Toxoplasma gondii ) on three species of Antarctic penguins: Adélie ( Pygoscelis adeliae ), gentoo ( Pygoscelis papua ) and chinstrap ( Pygoscelis antarctica ) from different lo...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Published in:Antarctic Science
Main Authors: Palacios, Maria José, Barbosa, Andrés, Pedraza-Díaz, Susana, Ortega-Mora, Luis Miguel, Valera, Francisco, Cuervo, José Javier, Benzal, Jesús, De La Cruz, Carlos
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: Cambridge University Press (CUP) 2010
Subjects:
Geology
Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics
Oceanography
Antarctic
The Antarctic
Antarctic Peninsula
South Shetland Islands
Antarc*
Antarctic Science
Antarctica
Pygoscelis adeliae
Pygoscelis antarctica
Pygoscelis papua
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0954102010000039
https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0954102010000039
Description
Summary:Abstract We carried out a study to investigate the presence of some protozoan parasites ( Cryptosporidium sp., Giardia sp., Toxoplasma gondii ) on three species of Antarctic penguins: Adélie ( Pygoscelis adeliae ), gentoo ( Pygoscelis papua ) and chinstrap ( Pygoscelis antarctica ) from different locations along the Antarctic Peninsula and the South Shetland Islands. Swabs and faeces samples were analysed by PCR assay for Cryptosporidium sp. and Giardia sp. while Toxoplasma was studied using serological methods from blood samples. We did not detect the presence of these organisms in the species studied. However, based on the upper values of the confidence intervals of the observed prevalence, their presence cannot be completely excluded.

Similar Items