This is a survey of the parasitic helminths of 71 individuals of 14 species of waterfowl belonging to the families Ardeidae, Rallidae, Scolopacidae and
Abstract. A helminthological survey was undertaken on 39 individuals of the Okinawa Rail Gallirallus okinawae that had either died following rescue or were collected as carcasses between 2004 and 2006 from Yanbaru region, Okinawa, Japan. A total of seven helminth species, including three nematode (Heterakis isolonche, Strongyloides sp. and Skrjabinoclava sp.), two trematode (Glaphyrostomum sp. and Tanaisia sp.), an unidentified cestode and an acanthocephalan species (Plagiorhynchus sp.) were obtained and identified morphologically. Except for H. isolonche and Glaphyrostomum sp., the other five helminth species were the first records for G. okinawae. A significantly higher occurrence of Tanaisia sp. was detected for male rails compared to female rails. Since H. isolonche is known to cause nodular typhlitis and/or granuloma formation in bird guts, monitoring of helminths is recommended in this endangered rail species.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.