Abstract
Morocco has a great diversity of reptiles; more than 26% of the herpetofauna species are considered to be endemic. Nevertheless, there is little information available on helminth parasites of Moroccan lizards. The purpose of this article is to establish a helminth list using non-invasive methods for natural populations of seven lizard species: Acanthodactylus maculatus, Chalcides mionecton, Chalcides montanus, Chalcides polylepis, Quedenfeldtia moerens, Quedenfeldtia trachyblepharus, and Tarentola mauritanica. For each species, prevalence and intensity of infection were given as well as their relationship to some determinant parameters (sex, age class, size, altitude, and seasons). Four species of nematodes, Parapharyngodon micipsae, Pharyngodon mamillatus, Spauligodon auziensis, Thelandros alatus, and unassigned Spauligodon were found. Mean helminth intensity for the seven lizard species was 7.3 ± 16.2 SD (range = 1–92 in infected lizards), with total infection prevalence of 5.6%. Mixed infections were observed in Chalcides montanus and Chalcides polylepis co-infected by Pharyngodon mamillatus and Spauligodon sp. Furthermore, the intensity of infection by nematodes were significantly different among the seven studied species. The nematode infection in Chalcides mionecton were related to sex, host size, and altitude; in Chalcides polylepis to the host age; in Quedenfeldtia trachyblepharus to elevation, age, and host size; and in Tarentola Mauritanica to age, body size, seasons, and altitude. In conclusion, our study provides data about nine new host and locality records and the effect of some determinant factors on host parasitism.
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Helminths from 7 species of lizards deposited in the Laboratory of Water, Biodiversity and Climate Changes (WaterBiodiCC), Faculty of Sciences, Semlalia, Cadi Ayyad University, Marrakech, Morocco.
Acanthodactylus maculatus: Spauligodon sp. (WBCCER 1540).
Chalcides mionecton: Parapharyngodon micipsae (WBCCER 1213), Thelandros alatus (WBCCER 1480).
Chalcides montanus: Pharyngodon mamillatus (WBCCER 131–1), Spauligodon sp. (WBCCER 131–2).
Chalcides polylepis: Pharyngodon mamillatus (WBCCER 1476–1), Spauligodon sp. (WBCCER 1476–2), Thelandros alatus (WBCCER 1550).
Quedenfeldtia moerens: Spauligodon sp. (WBCCER 205).
Quedenfeldtia trachyblepharus: Spauligodon sp. (WBCCER 283).
Tarentola mauritanica: Spauligodon auziensis (WBCCER 1290).
Helminths from 7 species of lizards from Morocco deposited in the Harold W. Manter Parasitology Collection (HWML), University of Nebraska, Lincoln, USA.
Acanthodactylus maculatus: Spauligodon sp. (HWML 112,278).
Chalcides mionecton: Parapharyngodon micipsae (HWML 112,279), Thelandros alatus (HWML 112,280).
Chalcides montanus: Pharyngodon mamillatus (HWML 112,281).
Chalcides polylepis: Pharyngodon mamillatus (HWML 112,282), Thelandros alatus (HWML 112,283).
Quedenfeldtia moerens: Spauligodon sp. (HWML 112,284).
Quedenfeldtia trachyblepharus: Spauligodon sp. (HWML 112,285).
Tarentola mauritanica: Spauligodon auziensis (HWML 112,286).
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Acknowledgements
We would like to thank “Haut Commissariat aux Eaux et Forêts et à la Lutte Contre la Désertification (HCEFLCD)” for the permit to work in the field.
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Financial support for fieldwork was provided by Cadi Ayyad University.
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Conceptualization: Omar Er-Rguibi and El Hassan El Mouden. Funding acquisition: El Hassan El Mouden and Abbad Aziz. Fieldwork: Omar Er-Rguibi, El-Mustapha Laghzaoui, Abdessamad Aglagane, Latifa Kimdil, Abdelaziz Abbad, El Hassan El Mouden. Data analysis: Omar Er-Rguibi, Charles Robert Bursey, El-Mustapha Laghzaoui, Aglagane Abdessamad and Kimdil Latifa. The first draft of the manuscript was written by Omar Er-Rguibi, and El Hassan El Mouden, Charles Robert Bursey, and Abbad Aziz commented on a previous version of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript. The present work is a part of Omar Er-Rguibi’s thesis.
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All applicable international and national guidelines for the care and use of animals were followed. After rapid measurements and samples collected, lizards were released immediately at their site of capture.
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Er-Rguibi, O., Bursey, C.R., Laghzaoui, EM. et al. New host and locality records of helminths’ infection of seven lizards from Morocco. Parasitol Res 121, 2537–2546 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-022-07588-3
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-022-07588-3