Intestinal parasites and bacteria of mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei) in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda.

Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka,Mark T Fox,Jessica M Rothman

doi:10.1007/s10329-004-0103-y

Gladys Kalema-Zikusoka, Mark T Fox + Show 1 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1007/s10329-004-0103-y

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Abstract

A survey in 1994 examined intestinal helminths and bacterial flora of mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei) in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park, Uganda. Parasites and bacteria were identified to genus in the feces of two groups of tourist-habituated and one group of non-tourist-habituated mountain gorillas. Eggs were identified as those of an anoplocephalid cestode, and nematode eggs representative of the genera: Trichuris, Ascaris, Oesophagostomum, Strongyloides, and Trichostrongylus. This is the first report of Ascaris lumbricoides-like eggs in mountain gorillas. Fecal samples (n=76) from all groups contained helminth eggs, with strongyle eggs and anoplocephalid eggs being the most common. Salmonella and Campylobacter were found in both gorilla groups. Regular long-term non-invasive fecal monitoring of the populations of mountain gorillas is essential for the prevention and identification of potential health threats by intestinal parasites and bacteria in this highly endangered subspecies.

Highlights

Mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei) are highly endangered with approximately 300 out of the estimated 650 found in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (BINP), and the remaining found in the Virunga Volcanoes region within the border areas of Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda (Mcneilage et al 2001)
Mountain gorilla tourism was introduced in Rwanda in 1979 and in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1984 (IGCP 1992)
We found eggs resembling the eggs of Ascaris lumbricoides

Summary

Introduction

Mountain gorillas (Gorilla beringei beringei) are highly endangered with approximately 300 out of the estimated 650 found in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park (BINP), and the remaining found in the Virunga Volcanoes region within the border areas of Rwanda, Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda (Mcneilage et al 2001). Habitat encroachment, poaching, and disease are major threats to mountain gorilla conservation (Werikhe et al 1997). Owing to their close genetic relatedness, mountain gorillas are at risk of contracting human pathogens that may cause disease in naive hosts (Ott-Joslin 1993), with the potential of affecting their population (Grenfell and Gulland 1995). Mountain gorilla tourism was introduced in Rwanda in 1979 and in the Democratic Republic of Congo in 1984 (IGCP 1992). Tourism rules were developed by the Uganda Wildlife Authority together with supporting agencies, and include: people digging a hole 30 cm deep to defecate, maintaining a 5-m distance between tourists and gorillas, and the right of park staff to refuse entry to tourists with overt clinical signs (Macfie 1992)

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