Biotechnologie, Agronomie, Société et Environnement (Jan 2001)
Gastro-intestinal nematodes and cestodes of cattle in Burkina Faso
Abstract
A survey of the parasites of abomasa, small, and large intestines of 94 bovines conveyed to the main slaughterhouse of Ouagadougou from the central and northern part of Burkina Faso allowed the identification of nine different worm species: Cooperia punctata, Cooperia pectinata, Haemonchus contortus, Trichostrongylus colubriformis, Bunostomum phlebotomum, Moniezia expensa, Avitellina sp., Oesophagostomum radiatum, and Trichuris sp. By far, Cooperia sp. was the most prevalent (89.4/), followed by H. contortus (66/), and O. radiatum (42.6/). The other worm species were much less prevalent. While only one cattle was free of parasites, it was noticed that polyparasitism was very common. There was a wide range of worm burden (0 to 42290) with however in most animals high worm numbers specially of Cooperia sp. This study confirmed that the rainy season constitutes a period of worm explosion. During the hot and dry season, H. contortus seemed primarily able to undergo arrested development in the L4 stage and secondarily to remain in the adult stage. Statistical analyses of levels of infestation did not show any significant difference according to age, sex, and weight of cattle.
