Abstract
A field necropsy was performed on a recently dead adult forest buffalo, Syncerus caffer nanus, found in the Nouabalé-Ndoki National Park, Republic of Congo. Based on the gross and histological lesions, the cause of death was determined to be conspecific fighting. Ectoparasites collected from this forest buffalo were Amblyomma sp. (larvae) and Rhipicephalus ziemanni Neumann. Endoparasites collected included a paramphistomid trematode, Carmyerius gregarius, and oocysts of Eimeria spp., paramphistomid eggs (presumably from C. gregarius), metastrongylid lungworm larvae, and strongylid eggs. Parasitic findings from this forest buffalo were compared to previous reports from savanna and forest buffalo.
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Acknowledgements
We thank the Republic of Congo’s Ministry of Forest Economy and the Department of Wildlife and Protected Areas, especially Mr. J.-P. Onday, Director of the Department of Wildlife and Protected Areas, and Mr. B. Djoni, Conservator of Nouabalé-Ndoki National Park, for their support and conservation efforts. At the WCS, we thank Mr. Bryan Curran and Mr. J. Mokoko-Ikonga, who were Director and Assistant Director of the WCS Congo Protected Areas Programme at the time this work was carried out, for logistical help and for obtaining permits for specimen export. For identification of endoparasites and histological diagnoses, we thank the Diagnostic Laboratory of the College of Veterinary Medicine, Cornell University; J.M. Kinsella, HelmWest Laboratory, Missoula, Montana; and Mike J. Linn. Many thanks also to Lisa Korte (née Molloy) and Phillip Henschel for constructive criticism of the first draft. Finally, thanks to Eric Sanderson for carrying the samples to New York for examination.
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Deem, S.L., Maisels, F. & Robbins, R.G. Necropsy and parasitic findings from an adult forest buffalo (Syncerus caffer nanus) found dead in the Republic of Congo. Eur J Wildl Res 51, 60–62 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10344-004-0072-x
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10344-004-0072-x