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Biased sex ratio and niche restriction in Baruscapillaria obsignata (Madsen 1945) (Nematoda, Capillariidae) from Columba livia (Aves, Columbidae)

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 October 2011

S. D'Ávila ,
E.C.A. Bessa ,
S. Souza-Lima  and
M.L.A. Rodrigues
S. D'Ávila*
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, Institute of Biological Sciences, Juiz de Fora Federal University, Minas Gerais, Brazil Malacological Museum Prof. Maury Pinto de Oliveira, Juiz de Fora Federal University, Minas Gerais, Brazil
E.C.A. Bessa
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, Institute of Biological Sciences, Juiz de Fora Federal University, Minas Gerais, Brazil Malacological Museum Prof. Maury Pinto de Oliveira, Juiz de Fora Federal University, Minas Gerais, Brazil
S. Souza-Lima
Affiliation:
Department of Zoology, Institute of Biological Sciences, Juiz de Fora Federal University, Minas Gerais, Brazil
M.L.A. Rodrigues
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Parasitology, Veterinary Institute, Rio de Janeiro Federal Rural University, Brazil
*
* E-mail: sthefanedavila@hotmail.com
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Abstract

In the present study populations of the avian nematode species Baruscapillaria obsignata are described from Columba livia. Male and female individuals were obtained from 27 birds, fixed in alcohol/formalin/acetic acid (AFA) and preserved in 70% ethanol. Nematodes were identified and then counted under a stereoscopic microscope. Baruscapillaria obsignata were much more frequent in the anterior third of the small intestine, and females were more abundant than males in all infra populations. The prevalence was 55.6%, mean intensity was 11.8 (median 11.0; range 1–31) and abundance 6.56. In the present study, we observed an aggregated distribution of parasite infrapopulations, as demonstrated by the value of the exponent of the negative binomial distribution, K = 0.2773; by the discrepancy index, D = 0.656 and by the variance/mean ratio, 12.44. The female/male sex ratios found in all infrapopulations were always greater than 1, showing a bias in favour of female abundance. This tendency was especially marked in infrapopulations containing fewer individuals. The sizes of infrapopulations ranged from 5 to 31 individuals. The mean sex ratio observed was 2.69 ± 3.28 (median 1.83; range 0–11). In infrapopulations with 5–15 individuals, the sex ratios observed varied from 2.6 to 11, while in those with 17–31 individuals, the sex ratios were lower, ranging from 1.7 to 2.4. There was a negative correlation between the intensity of infection and the sex ratio of infrapopulations. Results are discussed in terms of possible factors influencing the processes that lead to niche restriction and biased sex ratios in parasite infrapopulations.

Type
Research Papers
Information
Journal of Helminthology , Volume 86 , Issue 4 , December 2012 , pp. 401 - 405
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2011

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