Abstract
We present data on nematode infracommunity of the arboreal lizard Polycrhus acutirostris in the semiarid Caatinga biome, northeastern Brazil. Twenty- twolizard specimens collected in the municipality of Várzea Alegre in Ceará State and in the municipality of Exu in Pernambuco State were analyzed. Two species of nematodes were found, an Oxyuridae, Gynaecometra bahiensis, which had a mean intensity of infection 23.5 ± 5.8 (prevalence 22%) and a Physalopteridae, Physaloptera retusa which had infection intensity of 21 (prevalence 9%). There were no significant differences between the parasitism rates of male or female lizards. Polychrus acutirostris demonstrated low richness of nematode parasites, but high levels of infection with G. bahiensis. Polychrus acutirostrisis reported here as a new host for P. retusa.
Highlights
Helminth communities have been studied in different lizard populations in Brazil, mainly in resting (Vrcibradic et al, 2000; Menezes et al, 2004), Cerrado (Brazilian savanna), Pantanal, and Amazonian biomes (Goldberg et al, 2007; Ávila and Silva, 2010)
We examined the relationships of the host mass (g) and snout-vent length (SVL) to the numbers of nematode using Pearson’s linear correlation analysis
Five individuals were parasitized with Gynaecometra bahiensis Araujo, 1976 (Nematoda: Oxyuridae); the mean intensity of infection was 23.5 ± 5.8
Summary
Helminth communities have been studied in different lizard populations in Brazil, mainly in resting (sandy coastal) (Vrcibradic et al, 2000; Menezes et al, 2004), Cerrado (Brazilian savanna), Pantanal (wetland), and Amazonian biomes (Goldberg et al, 2007; Ávila and Silva, 2010). The arboreal polychrotid lizard Polychrus acutirostris (Spix, 1825) is found in open vegetation formations in Argentina, Bolivia, and Brazil (Garda et al, 2012) in areas of Cerrado and Caatinga vegetation (Kawashita-Ribeiro and Ávila, 2008; Ribeiro et al, 2012b), being often found near human habitations (Vanzolini, 1974). It is a medium-sized diurnal lizard, uses a sit-and-wait foraging strategy and feeds predominantly arthropods (Coleoptera and Hymenoptera), and plant material (leaves, seeds, and flowers),with reproduction between the months of September and October (Vitt and Lacher, 1981). The present study analyzed the parasitic nematodes of P. acutirostris in two Caatinga vegetation localities in northeastern Brazil
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