engleski

Intestinal helminths of loggerhead sea turtle, Caretta caretta, from eastern Adriatic Sea

In order to study the health status of resident loggerhead population in the eastern Adriatic Sea (Croatia and Slovenia), we performed a general necropsy on 25 dead stranded loggerhead turtles with the curved carapace length (CCL) ranging from 26.4 – 85.4 cm (mean CCL: 47.6, SD: 15.9) and examined gastrointestinal tract for the presence of intestinal helminths (Trematoda and Nematoda). The parasites were isolated from the food samples, fixed in 10% formalin, and examined with a stereo-microscope. Nine out of 25 loggerheads examined (36%) were infected with intestinal helminthes. In total, we identified five species, while in the case of one trematode, the identification was not performed. We identified two Trematoda species (Calicodes anthos and Trematoda sp.) and three Nematoda species (Sulcascaris sulcata, Anisakis simplex and Hysterothylacium sp.). S. sulcata was the most frequent and the most abundant species, present in all infected loggerheads with 148 specimens in total. A. simplex was found in three (33%) out of nine infected loggerheads, represented with 21 individuals. C. anthos was present only in two of infected samples (22%), and recorded with 17 individuals. Although 36% of loggerheads included in this study were found to be infected by intestinal helminthes, these were probably not a contributory factor to strandings. However, our results emphasize the need of antihelminthic processing of loggerheads treated in captivity for the enhancement and recovery.

sea turtles; health status; Trematoda; Nematoda; Sulcascaris sulcata; Anisakis simplex; Calicodes anthos; Hysterothylacium sp.; Mediterranean

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