Gastrointestinal symbionts of free-ranging western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla)

0396759 - ÚBO 2014 US eng A - Abstract
Kalousová, B. - Profousová, I. - Pomajbíková, K. - Modrý, David - Shutt, K. A. - Hasegawa, H. - Benavides, J. A. - Todd, A. - Petrželková, Klára Judita
Gastrointestinal symbionts of free-ranging western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla).
American Journal of Primatology. Wiley. Roč. 75, S1 (2013), s. 85. ISSN 0275-2565. E-ISSN 1098-2345.
[Annual Meeting of the American Society of Primatologists /36./. 19.06.2013-22.06.2013, San Juan]
Institutional support: RVO:68081766
Keywords : Gorilla * Central African Republic
Subject RIV: EG - Zoology
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ajp.22188/pdf

Critically endangered western lowland gorillas (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) inhabit wide geographical range, but in comparison with less numerous eastern gorillas (Gorilla beringei) data about their gastrointestinal (GIT) symbiont fauna (in broader meaning parasites, commensals and mutualists) are rather scarce. From 2007 to 2011 we studied GIT symbionts of free‐ranging western lowland gorillas in Dzanga Ndoki National Park, Central African Republic, Dja Faunal Reserve and CampoMa’an National Park, Cameroon. The aims of the study in Dzanga Ndoki National Park were to: (i) evaluate the impact of individual host traits (sex, age) on symbiont infections; (ii) study temporal changes of symbiont infections; (iii) compare symbiont communities among the groups in different stages of habituation; (iv) assess the impact of season on symbiont infections. We also compared GIT symbiont communities of gorilla populations in Dzanga Ndoki, Campo Ma’an and Dja Faunal Reserve. Using standard coproscopic methods (sedimentation and flotation) and coprocultures we detected 9 symbiont taxa, five of them were protists and four helminths. We detected neither the effect of age or sex nor temporal changes in symbiont infections in the habituated group. We found seasonal differences only in strongylid nematodes. We did not record the impact of habituation on symbiont communities. The GIT symbiont fauna across the study sites was comparable.
Permanent Link: http://hdl.handle.net/11104/0224474