The effect of salt stress on biological diversity of parasites in marshes of southern Iraq.

Abstract

Aquatic systems are affected by highly variable environmental conditions, including salinity changes. Changes in salinity may be gradual or sudden; such as evaporation during summer and warm periods which in turn either reduce or increase salinity. Parasites are the most common in aquatic ecosystems and their transmission is strongly influenced by environmental conditions. However, the effect of salinity on the transmission of water-dwelling parasites has not been well studied. The present study aimed to detect the effects of long-period exposure to salinity on parasites in the marshes of southern Iraq as a result of low water levels in the Tigris, Euphrates, and Shatt Al-Arab in recent years. The results appeared in this study the presence of pathogenic intestinal parasites in the marshes of southern Iraq including Schistosoma spp., Polymorphus sp., Taenia sp., Ascaris lumbricoides, Strongyloides spp., Entamoeba histolytica, Giardia sp., Naegleria sp., Coccidia sp., Cryptosporidium sp., Acanthamoeba sp. and Blantidium sp. which were found in Haur Al-Chebaiesh and Haur Al-Hawizeh, Also, it observed highly presence of cercariae. In conclusion, these results indicated the ability of parasites to tolerance the salt stress due to its presence highly in these environmental conditions.