FUNGAL CONTAMINATION OF AIR AND WATER SAMPLES FROM POULTRY FARMS THAT PRACTICE FLOOR AND CAGE HOUSING SYSTEMS IN ANAMBRA STATE, NIGERIA.

Abstract

The industrialization of the poultry sector poses negative impact on air and water. Investigation on fungal contamination of 100 samples each of air and water were carried out in each of the ten poultry farms that practice floor and cage housing systems in Anambra State. The air mycoflora by plate exposure method and water samples (100ml) collected from tap water and drinkers in sterile sample bottles, were spread inoculated on Sabouraud Dextrose Agar plates supplemented with 0.05mg/ml Chloramphenicol, incubated at 25oC for 3 – 7 days. The isolates were identified based on their macroscopic, microscopic and genetic features. Fungi isolated include the following genera, Aspergillus, Penicillium, Fusarium, Curvularia, Trichoderma, Scopulariopsis, Acremonium, Syncephalis, Lichtheima, Paecilomyces, Cunninghamella, Starchybotrys, Chrysonila and Yeast. The fungal loads of air and water samples during dry and rainy seasons were higher in poultries that practice floor system than cage system. The poultry with floor system had the highest mean fungal loads of 1.29 × 102 cfu/ml for air and 1.22 × 105 cfu/ml for water during dry season which is statistically significant (p=0.024). Most of the identified fungal species are characterized as allergens and an exposure of their spores may provoke adverse health effects.

Keywords

• Poultry farms
• floor system
• fungi
• cage system
• fungal load