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Survey of Helminth Parasites in Populations of Alouatta palliata mexicana and A. pigra in Continuous and in Fragmented Habitat in Southern Mexico

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Abstract

The 2 howler species that occur in southern Mexico, Alouatta palliata mexicana and Alouatta pigra are endangered, mainly as a result of habitat loss and fragmentation from human activity. Little is known about the gastrointestinal parasite communities affecting their populations, and lack of baseline information for populations of howler species in continuous forest habitats, makes evaluations of gastrointestinal parasite prevalence in populations in fragmented landscapes difficult. We report the results of a one-time broad survey of gastrointestinal parasites in fecal samples of individuals from several demographically stable populations of Alouatta palliata mexicana and A. pigra existing in continuous and/or protected forests. We further report similar data for populations of both species in human-fragmented landscapes. We detected 6 parasites for each howler monkey species, but only 3 of them (Trematode I, Controrchis biliophilus, Trypanoxyuris sp.) were common to both species. While parasitic prevalence in populations of both howler species was, in general, higher in the fragmented habitat than in continuous and/or protected forests. The difference is only marginally significant in Alouatta pigra. Some parasites (Coccidia and Strongylid) only appeared in populations in fragmented landscapes. Preliminary data suggest that adult males tended to have higher parasite prevalence values than those of adult females in both howler species. Parasite prevalence is associated to average group size, but not to population density in Alouatta pigra.

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Acknowledgements

Research supported by the Scott Neotropical Fund from the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo, Universidad Autónoma de México, National Geographic, and Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Xochimilco. We thank Sarie Van Belle, Yasminda García, David Muñoz, Manuel Oñorbe, Petra Wilbrink, Joseph Howes, Tana Barrueta, Lesly Alejandre and Octavio Cruz for assisting with the collection of fecal samples. We thank Araceli Lima DVS from UNAM for identification of Raillietina sp. and Trypanoxyuris sp. We are grateful to the Mexican environmental agencies, CONANP and SEMARNAT, for permission to work in the C/P forests.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana-Xochimilco, Distrito Federal, México

    Genoveva Trejo-Macías & Miguel Ángel Mosqueda Cabrera

  2. Estación de Biología Los Tuxtlas, Instituto de Biología-UNAM, Apdo. 176, San Andrés Tuxtla, Veracruz, México

    Alejandro Estrada

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  1. Genoveva Trejo-Macías
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  2. Alejandro Estrada
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  3. Miguel Ángel Mosqueda Cabrera
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Correspondence to Alejandro Estrada.

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Trejo-Macías, G., Estrada, A. & Mosqueda Cabrera, M.Á. Survey of Helminth Parasites in Populations of Alouatta palliata mexicana and A. pigra in Continuous and in Fragmented Habitat in Southern Mexico. Int J Primatol 28, 931–945 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-007-9137-5

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10764-007-9137-5

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