Extraintestinal nematodes of the red foxVulpes vulpesin north-west Italy

Abstract

Extraintestinal nematodes of the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) are a wide group of parasites that infect wild and domestic carnivores and occasionally humans. Nematodes in the cardiopulmonary system, stomach, urinary apparatus and muscle tissue of 165 red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) from north-west Italy (Liguria and Piedmont) were investigated between 2009 and 2012. Of the cardiopulmonary nematodes, a high prevalence of Angiostrongylus vasorum and Eucoleus aerophilus (syn. Capillaria aerophila) was found, 78.2% and 41.8% respectively; Crenosoma vulpis (15.8%) and Filaroides spp. (4.8%) were also found. Spirocerca lupi (23.5%), Aonchotheca putorii (syn. Capillaria putorii) (8.6%) and Physaloptera spp. (2.5%) were detected in the stomach and Pearsonema plica (syn. Capillaria plica) (56.8%) in the bladder. Eucoleus boehmi (syn. Capillaria boehmi) was also detected in the nasal cavities of one of the two foxes examined. A coprological examination revealed eggs of E. aerophilus, A. putorii, S. lupi, Physaloptera spp. and eggs of intestinal parasites. Filarial worms were absent in all the 165 animals examined, nor was there evidence of Trichinella spp. in any of the foxes. The foxes were found to host a high prevalence of many species of extraintestinal nematodes. The prevalence of A. vasorum in foxes found in the present study is among the highest in Europe. In addition, to the best of our knowledge, E. boehmi and Filaroides spp. have never been reported before in this host in Italy.

Cardiorespiratory and gastrointestinal parasites of dogs in north-west Italy

“…Epidemiological surveys have also been conducted in central Italy, where 0.4 % of 239 client-owned dogs examined were found to be positive (Riggio et al, 2013) and in central and southern Italy, where 0.96 % of 534 individual dogs and 2.48 % of 471 kennel dogs were positive (Di Cesare et al, 2011). In the study area investigated in the present survey, the prevalence at necropsy of A. vasorum in 165 foxes was very high (78.2 %) (Magi et al, 2015). Conversely, among the 450 examined dogs, only three were found positive for the larvae of this parasite by faecal examinations (0.7 %).…”

“…C. vulpis was found only in one dog (0.2 %). This species is endemic in the red fox in Europe and North America and was found with a prevalence of 15.8 % in foxes in the study area (Magi et al 2015). It appears to be rarer in dogs.…”

“…In Liguria its prevalence in foxes was 41.8 % at necropsy, and 25.5 %. at copromicroscopy (Magi et al, 2015). The fi nding of E. boehmi in dogs in the study area represents one of the fi rst reports of this parasite in Italy (De Liberato et al, 2009;Veronesi et al, 2013).…”

“…Three adult worms of E. boehmi were collected from the nasal cavities of a fox examined in the study area (Magi et al, 2015).…”

“…E. aerophilus may be responsible for rare zoonotic infections in humans (Aftandelians et al, 1977;Lalošević et al, 2008). Similarly, metastrongyloid nematodes Crenosoma vulpis and Angiostrongylus vasorum infect both wild canids and dogs (Conboy, 2009;Magi et al, 2015). Many surveys have been carried out on dog parasites around the world, and all highlight the importance of studying these parasites both from a veterinary and a public health perspective.…”