Helminth community structure of Scinax nasicus (Anura: Hylidae) from a South American subtropical area

HAMANN M. I.; KEHR A. I.; GONZÁLEZ C. E.

DISEASES OF AQUATIC ORGANISMS

INTER-RESEARCH

Lugar: Oldendorf/Luhe; Año: 2010 vol. 93 p. 71 - 82

0177-5103

The main goal of this study was to evaluate the relative influence of season, time of year, host body size, and host sex on abundance of helminth species parasitic in the frog Scinax nasicus. A total of 273 frogs was collected between December 2004 and November 2006 over all seasons in Corrientes City, Province of Corrientes, Argentina. Helminth community included 21 taxa, and was dominated particularly by larval trematodes. Infected frogs harboured a maximum of 7 species. Host sex and season played no significant effect in determining infracommunity parasite species abundance. Similarly, species richness was similar for both host sexes, and across time (year and season). However, occurrence of the parasites Opisthogonimus species No. 2 and Travtrema aff. stenocotyle greatly varied over time. Host body size was the main factor for determining infrapopulation structure of Centrorhynchus sp. Species richness was significantly and positively correlated with host body size. Strong associations were observed mainly between metacercariae of some species. The transmission strategies of parasites suggest that this hylid acquires infections by ingestion of infective larvae, and through direct contact by larval parasites from aquatic and terrestrial habitats.