Morphometric characteristics of first stage Elaphostrongylus cervi (Nematoda: Protostrongylidae) larvae from Bulgaria

Abstract

A description of the morphology of first stage Elaphostrongylus cervi (Nematoda: Protostrongylidae) larvae on materials from Bulgaria is presented. The larvae were obtained from a red deer (Cervus elaphus L.) from the wildlife-breeding station “Vitinya” in the Balkan Mountains. The metric results about the larvae in micrometers are as follows: body length −423 (377–473), maximum body width −20 (18–24), esophagus length −193 (172–217), distance from the anterior body end to the excretory pore −110 (85–134), distance from the anterior body end to the genital premordium −281 (218–324), distance from the anus to the tail tip −37 (32–42), and tail length −11 (10–14). The present data were compared with previous reports on the same species in West and Central Europe. This is the first morphometric description of first stage E. cervi larvae from Bulgaria and Southeast Europe.