Opportunistic parasites associated mortality in a nutritionally compromised young wild Bengal tiger
Present communication deals with unusual observations made during the post mortem examination of a subadult wild tiger from the Pilibhit Tiger Reserve of Uttar Pradesh (India). Physical examination revealed hide bound condition, dull appearance of body coat, old healed fracture of right radius and s...
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Indian Council of Agricultural Research
2020-09-01
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Series: | Indian Journal of Animal Sciences |
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Online Access: | https://epubs.icar.org.in/index.php/IJAnS/article/view/104191 |
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author | HIRA RAM ANIL KUMAR NEHRA P S BANERJEE RAJAT GARG M KARIKALAN A M PAWDE A K SHARMA R K SINGH |
author_facet | HIRA RAM ANIL KUMAR NEHRA P S BANERJEE RAJAT GARG M KARIKALAN A M PAWDE A K SHARMA R K SINGH |
author_sort | HIRA RAM |
collection | DOAJ |
description | Present communication deals with unusual observations made during the post mortem examination of a subadult wild tiger from the Pilibhit Tiger Reserve of Uttar Pradesh (India). Physical examination revealed hide bound condition, dull appearance of body coat, old healed fracture of right radius and septic wound in right forelimb apart from a spine of porcupine piercing the nasal septum causing nose bleeding. Organ-wise inspection revealed presence of Dirofilaria immitis adult worms (n=3) in the right ventricle of the heart, Physaloptera sp. in the stomach, Toxocara cati, Ancylostoma sp., Taenia sp. and Spirometra sp. in the small intestine. Examination of intestinal content revealed eggs of Paragonimus sp. and Trichuris sp. along with large number of Isospora sp. oocysts apart from eggs of Toxocara, Ancylostoma, Taenia and Spirometra. The intensity of worms recovered (parasitic load) from the tiger in the present case was found to be surprising in the sense that despite of specific micro-environment requirement of each parasitic species, host allowed buildup of severe infection of almost all the parasitic genera. This situation might have arisen due to compromised immune status of the tiger due to prolonged starvation because of difficulty in catching the prey. All these parasites are present in the tiger reserve and pose a threat to this priceless animal species, especially if the host is immunocompromised. |
first_indexed | 2024-04-10T07:47:53Z |
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issn | 0367-8318 2394-3327 |
language | English |
last_indexed | 2024-04-10T07:47:53Z |
publishDate | 2020-09-01 |
publisher | Indian Council of Agricultural Research |
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series | Indian Journal of Animal Sciences |
spelling | doaj.art-a17a7b43fa0f4719b14d8805d68d06752023-02-23T10:24:37ZengIndian Council of Agricultural ResearchIndian Journal of Animal Sciences0367-83182394-33272020-09-0190410.56093/ijans.v90i4.104191Opportunistic parasites associated mortality in a nutritionally compromised young wild Bengal tigerHIRA RAM0ANIL KUMAR NEHRA1P S BANERJEE2RAJAT GARG3M KARIKALAN4A M PAWDE5A K SHARMA6R K SINGH7ICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Uttar Pradesh 243 122 IndiaICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Uttar Pradesh 243 122 IndiaICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Uttar Pradesh 243 122 IndiaICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Uttar Pradesh 243 122 IndiaICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Uttar Pradesh 243 122 IndiaICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Uttar Pradesh 243 122 IndiaICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Uttar Pradesh 243 122 IndiaICAR-Indian Veterinary Research Institute, Izatnagar, Uttar Pradesh 243 122 IndiaPresent communication deals with unusual observations made during the post mortem examination of a subadult wild tiger from the Pilibhit Tiger Reserve of Uttar Pradesh (India). Physical examination revealed hide bound condition, dull appearance of body coat, old healed fracture of right radius and septic wound in right forelimb apart from a spine of porcupine piercing the nasal septum causing nose bleeding. Organ-wise inspection revealed presence of Dirofilaria immitis adult worms (n=3) in the right ventricle of the heart, Physaloptera sp. in the stomach, Toxocara cati, Ancylostoma sp., Taenia sp. and Spirometra sp. in the small intestine. Examination of intestinal content revealed eggs of Paragonimus sp. and Trichuris sp. along with large number of Isospora sp. oocysts apart from eggs of Toxocara, Ancylostoma, Taenia and Spirometra. The intensity of worms recovered (parasitic load) from the tiger in the present case was found to be surprising in the sense that despite of specific micro-environment requirement of each parasitic species, host allowed buildup of severe infection of almost all the parasitic genera. This situation might have arisen due to compromised immune status of the tiger due to prolonged starvation because of difficulty in catching the prey. All these parasites are present in the tiger reserve and pose a threat to this priceless animal species, especially if the host is immunocompromised.https://epubs.icar.org.in/index.php/IJAnS/article/view/104191GI nematodesHeart wormMortalityPanthera tigrisParagonimusTapeworms |
spellingShingle | HIRA RAM ANIL KUMAR NEHRA P S BANERJEE RAJAT GARG M KARIKALAN A M PAWDE A K SHARMA R K SINGH Opportunistic parasites associated mortality in a nutritionally compromised young wild Bengal tiger Indian Journal of Animal Sciences GI nematodes Heart worm Mortality Panthera tigris Paragonimus Tapeworms |
title | Opportunistic parasites associated mortality in a nutritionally compromised young wild Bengal tiger |
title_full | Opportunistic parasites associated mortality in a nutritionally compromised young wild Bengal tiger |
title_fullStr | Opportunistic parasites associated mortality in a nutritionally compromised young wild Bengal tiger |
title_full_unstemmed | Opportunistic parasites associated mortality in a nutritionally compromised young wild Bengal tiger |
title_short | Opportunistic parasites associated mortality in a nutritionally compromised young wild Bengal tiger |
title_sort | opportunistic parasites associated mortality in a nutritionally compromised young wild bengal tiger |
topic | GI nematodes Heart worm Mortality Panthera tigris Paragonimus Tapeworms |
url | https://epubs.icar.org.in/index.php/IJAnS/article/view/104191 |
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