The cestode community in northern fur seals (Callorhinus ursinus) on St. Paul Island, Alaska

The diversity and ecology of cestodes from the northern fur seals, Callorhinus ursinus (NFS), were examined using newly collected material from 756 humanely harvested subadult males between 2011 and 2014. NFSs were collected from five different haul-outs on St. Paul Island, Alaska. A total of 14,660...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International Journal for Parasitology: Parasites and Wildlife
Main Authors: Kuzmina, T.A., Hernández-Orts, Jesús S., Lyons, E.T., Spraker, T.R., Kornyushyn, V.V., Kuchta, R. (Roman)
Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
Language:English
Published: 2015
Subjects:
Adenocephalus pacificus (Diphyllobothrium pacificum)
Anophryocephalus cf. ochotensis
Cestoda
Diphyllobothridea
Diplogonoporus tetrapterus
Otariidae
North Pacific
Tapeworms
Tetrabothriidea
Alaska
Callorhinus ursinus
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijppaw.2015.04.007
http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0254230
Description
Summary:The diversity and ecology of cestodes from the northern fur seals, Callorhinus ursinus (NFS), were examined using newly collected material from 756 humanely harvested subadult males between 2011 and 2014. NFSs were collected from five different haul-outs on St. Paul Island, Alaska. A total of 14,660 tapeworms were collected with a prevalence of 98.5% and intensity up to 107 cestodes per host (mean intensity 19.7±16.5 SD). Three species of tapeworms were found: Adenocephalus pacificus (Diphyllobothriidea) was the most prevalent (prevalence 97.4%), followed by Diplogonoporus tetrapterus (49.7%), and 5 immature specimens of Anophryocephalus cf. ochotensis (Tetrabothriidea) (0.5%). Most of the cestodes found in the NFS were immature (69.7%). However, only 0.9% of cestodes were in larval (plerocercoid) stages. The species composition, prevalence and intensity of cestodes from these NFSs were not statistically different between the five separate haul-outs. Significant increases in the intensity of NFS infections were observed during the study period.

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