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Abstract

Amphistomiasis is caused by different species of trematodes in the family paramphistomatidae and is one of the neglected parasitic diseases of livestock. Amphistomiasis has a wide geographic distribution, especially in subtropical and tropical regions. Although adult stage of most of the amphistomes are seen in the rumen and reticulum of ruminants, but sometimes can be seen in bile ducts too. A few parasites were collected from the bile ducts of a native cattle from the Kerman slaughterhouse, Kerman Province, southeastern Iran, and samples were studied by histomorphological as well as, Scanning Electron Microscopy. The worms were identified as Explanatum explanatum using identification keys and SEM. This trematode has been identified in livestock from only two other provinces of Iran but this is the first report of it in Kerman Province. Specific epidemiological studies with exact slaughter inspections are needed to recognize the extent of the parasite prevalence in native animals of Iran.