HELMINTHS OF WOLF IN THE VORONEZH RESERVE AND ADJACENT TERRITORIES

Abstract

The wolf is the largest predatory mammal in the Central Black Soil region of Russia. The close trophic relationships of the wolf with wild ungulates and other animals play an important role in the formation of the modern predator helminth fauna. Helminthological materials from the wolf have been collected in the Voronezh Reserve and in adjacent natural areas for a long-term period (1981–2018). The modern fauna of the helminths of the wolf of the Voronezh Reserve contains 16 species. The main taxonomic groups of helminths (trematodes, cestodes, and nematodes) in the wolf are represented unevenly. The maximum number of helminth species is registered among nematodes – 12 species (Aonchothe caputorii, Eucoleus aerophilus, E. boehmi, Pearsonema plica, Calodium hepaticum, Trichinella nativa, Toxocara canis, Toxaskaris leonina, Uncinaria stenocephala, Crenosoma vulpis, Molineus patens, Dirofilaria repens). We have identified three species of cestodes (Dypilidium caninum, Taenia hydatigena, T. krabbei) and one species of trematodes (Alaria alata). The highest infection rates were registered for A. alata: the extensiveness of invasion (EI) is 92.3%, the intensity of invasion is 149.7 specimens, an abundance index is 138.2 specimens. High rates of wolf invasion by certain nematode species were revealed: E. boehmi (69.2%); P. plica (46.2%); E. aerophilus (38.5%); C. hepaticum (15.4%) and nematode T. nativa (27.9%). More than ten species of helminths of the wolf are of significant epidemiological and epizootological importance for this area.