<abstract xml:lang="en" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><p>Grazing herbivores mainly feed at low feeding height levels, while browsers select food items above ground level. Previous studies on gastrointestinal tract (GIT) nematode parasite burdens of African ungulates have suggested that browsing species hereby minimise the risk of infection with parasites. Here, we investigated the influence of feeding height levels on the pasture larval contamination level (PCL) in a natural African savannah eco-system in Queen Elizabeth National Park, western Uganda. The prevalence and mean abundance of infectious GIT nematode larvae on the pasture were used as measures of pasture contamination. Vegetation samples were examined following standard larval isolation, concentration and counting techniques. We found the feeding height level to be significantly related to the occurrence of infectious GIT nematode larvae, and the contamination was highest at low feeding levels. There was no statistically significant seasonal variation in the prevalence or mean abundance of the contamination of pastures with nematode larvae.</p></abstract>

Grazing herbivores mainly feed at low feeding height levels, while browsers select food items above ground level. Previous studies on gastrointestinal tract (GIT) nematode parasite burdens of African ungulates have suggested that browsing species hereby minimise the risk of infection with parasites. Here, we investigated the influence of feeding height levels on the pasture larval contamination level (PCL) in a natural African savannah eco-system in Queen Elizabeth National Park, western Uganda. The prevalence and mean abundance of infectious GIT nematode larvae on the pasture were used as measures of pasture contamination. Vegetation samples were examined following standard larval isolation, concentration and counting techniques. We found the feeding height level to be significantly related to the occurrence of infectious GIT nematode larvae, and the contamination was highest at low feeding levels. There was no statistically significant seasonal variation in the prevalence or mean abundance of the contamination of pastures with nematode larvae.

Foraging height levels and the risk of gastro-intestinal tract parasitic infections of wild ungulates in an African savannah eco-system

Mbarara University of Science and Technology, P. O. Box 1410, Mbarara, Uganda

Institut für Biochemie und Biologie, Abteilung für Evolutionsbiologie und Spezielle Zoologie, Universität Potsdam, Karl-Liebknecht Str. 24–25, 14476, Potsdam, Germany

Department of Zoology, University of Oklahoma, 730 Van Vleet Oval, Norman, OK, 73019, USA

Biozentrum Grindel and Zoologisches Museum, Universität Hamburg, Martin-Luther-King-Platz 3, 20146, Hamburg, Germany

Helminthologia

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Grazing herbivores mainly feed at low feeding height levels, while browsers select food items above ground level. Previous studies on gastrointestinal tract...

Foraging height levels and the risk of gastro-intestinal tract parasitic infections of wild ungulates in an African savannah eco-system

Published Online: Jun 01, 2006

Page range: 134 - 138

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/s11687-006-0026-9

Keywords
African ungulates, bushbuck, GIT nematode larvae, pasture contamination, Uganda

© 2006 Institute of Parasitology, SAS, Košice, Slovakia

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Foraging height levels and the risk of gastro-intestinal tract parasitic infections of wild ungulates in an African savannah eco-system

Published Online: Jun 01, 2006

Page range: 134 - 138

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/s11687-006-0026-9

KeywordsAfrican ungulates, bushbuck, GIT nematode larvae, pasture contamination, Uganda

© 2006 Institute of Parasitology, SAS, Košice, Slovakia

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Keywords
African ungulates, bushbuck, GIT nematode larvae, pasture contamination, Uganda