PARASITE FAUNA BIODIVERSITY IN ANIMALS AND PLANTS IN ANTHROPOGENIC ECOSYSTEM OF THE NORTH ARMENIAN REGIONS, LORI AND TAVUSH, AND THE LAKE SEVAN BASIN

Abstract

The parasite fauna in domestic animals, birds, fish, ixodofauna, some biohelminths’ circulation routes, and nematodes isolated from wood samples were studied. The fauna includes 50 species including 29 helminth species, of which 6 trematode species: Dicrocoelium dendriticum (D. lanceatum), Fasciola hepatica, F. gigantica, Paramphistomum cervi, Diplostomum spathaceum and D. paraspathaceum; 4 cestode species: Moniezia expansa, M. benedeni, Ligula intestinalis and Schyzocotyle acheilognathi; 18 nematode species: Ascaris suum, Ascaridia galli, Amidostomum anseris, Heterakis gallinarum, Syngamus trachea, Capillaria obsignata, Trichuris ovis, T. suis, Chabertia ovina, Nematodirus spathiger, Protostrongylus hobmaieri, Muellerius capillaris, Cystocaulus nigrescens, Metastrongylus elongatus, Strongylus equinus, Passalurus ambiguus, Rhabdochona macrostoma and R. fortunatovi, and one acanthocephalan species Pomphorhynchus kostylewi. We also found seven Eimeria species: E. exigua, E. media, E. stiedae, E. irresidua, E. perforans, E. magna and E. tenella, and two haematophagous parasites: Babesia bigemina and B. canis. The terrestrial molluscs, intermediate hosts of Dicrocelia and Protostrongylus, were represented by the species Hesseola solidior, and freshwater molluscs, intermediate hosts of Dicrocelia and paramphistomes, were represented by two species: Ancylus fluviatilis and Planorbis planorbis. One species of soil mites, intermediate hosts of cestodes of the Scheloribates gen., was identified. We identified species composition of ixodid ticks totaling 12 species: Ixodes ricinus, I. redikorzevi, I. persulcatus, Dermacentor marginatus, D. pictus, D. silvarum, Hyalomma aegyptium, H. marginatum (= H. plumbeum), H. asiaticum caucasicum, Rhipicephalus sanguineus, R. annulatus, R. bursa.