Chapter 5 - Eimeriidae in the Caniformia Family Mephitidae

Abstract

This chapter summarizes the small amount of information known to date on the eimeriid coccidia described from the canid family Mephitidae, which has 4 genera that contain 12 species. A brief introduction is given including skunk natural history, taxonomy, and biology, and then we summarize what little is known about the only two Eimeria species from mephitids that have ever been described, both from the striped skunk, Mephitis mephitis. Two Isospora species are also covered here briefly because they were originally described from Spilogale putorius, but, as explained in Chapter 4, all the known Isospora species from canids that have sporocyst without Stieda bodies now belong in the Cystoisospora (Chapter 15) because of their unusual heteroxenous life histories and molecular affinities with the Sarcocystidae. Unfortunately, very few biologists want to study or examine skunks, so only 2/12 (17%) species in the family have been looked at for intestinal coccidia.