IUCN / SSC Cat Specialist Group - Digital Cat Library |
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| Criffield, M.; Thomas, J.E.; Logan, K.; Cunningham, M.; Onorato, D.; Pozio, E.; Reichard, M.V. | |
| Trichinella in two disjunct populations of puma | |
| 2014 Conference Proceeding | |
Trichinella spp. are zoonotic nematodes common in carnivores throughout the world. These parasites are unique because the same individual is host to all stages of the nematode and transmission is based on ingestion of infected tissues. We determine the prevalence of _Trichiniellea_ spp. infections in Florida panthers (_Puma concolor coryi_) and cougar (_P. concolor cougar_) from Colorado. Tongue samples from 111 panther and 40 cougar mortalities were collected at necropsy and examined by artificial digestion. Trichinella spp.- larvae were detected in 24 (21.1%) panthers and 18 (45.0%) cougars. Of these Trichinella samples, 19 from Florida and 9 from Colorado were genotyped to species. From Florida, _T. pseudospirialis_ was detected in 16,_ T. spiralis_ in 1, and 2 panthers were infected with both _T. pseudospiralis_ and _T. spiralis._ From Colorado,_ T. murrelli_ was detected in 5,_ T. pseudospiralis_ in 2, and 1 cougar was infected with_ Trichinella _genotype T6. Our results indicated that infection of Trichinella is common throughout different populations of pumas in the U.S. This is the first report in U.S. wildlife. Infections of _Trichinella _spp. in puma is usually subclinical and rarely causes disease. However, understanding the epidemiology of _Trichinella_ spp. in puma becomes increasingly important since Florida panthers are endangered and cougars harvested in Colorado are often consumed by humans |
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