Abstract
A parasitological survey was conducted at some zoos in the states of São Paulo and Paraná, Brazil, from 2009 to 2011. Several groups of birds were surveyed for fecal samples, but the most important was Psittacidae. Among the parasites, Eimeria (coccidian) and Capillaria, Ascaridia and Heterakis (nematodes) were observed in almost one third of the samples. Presence of a rich parasite fauna associated with captive birds seems to be an effect of captivity, since data on free-ranging birds indicate few or virtually no parasites at all. The discovery of new coccidian species during this survey reveals the need of more research on the subject as even well-known bird species have unknown parasites, but caution must be exercised in order to avoid descriptions of pseudoparasites.
Highlights
Most of the birds kept at zoos in Brazil belong to native species
A parasitological survey was conducted at some zoos in the states of São Paulo and Paraná, Brazil, from 2009 to 2011
Some new eimerian species were described as part of this project: E. abmitu (Figure 1), host: Mitu tuberosum (HOFSTATTER & GUARALDO, 2011a) and Figures 1-4
Summary
Most of the birds kept at zoos in Brazil belong to native species. Psittacine species are the most common and diverse, but Cracidae, Ramphastidae, Passeriformes and ratites are present. Little is known about their parasites and deaths are fairly common in captivity, some probably due to high parasite loads. The infection with Sarcocystis falcatula may lead psittacids to acute fatal disease (CLUBB & FRENKEL, 1992). The most common gut parasites of birds are nematodes (mainly ascarids and capillariids) and protozoa (usually coccidians). In a survey conducted by Cordón et al (2009) on birds (mostly psittacids) at the Almuñecar ornithological garden in Spain, roughly half of the samples were positive for some type of parasite. Was the most prevalent nematode, but Ascaridia sp.
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