Prevalencia de nemátodos gastrointestinales en Caimán crocodilus del Centro de rescate de fauna silvestre Narayana en Ecuador mediante análisis coprológico.

Abstract

In the context of sanitary monitoring of captive reptiles, the assessment of gastrointestinal parasites is relevant because it allows estimation of the level of risk to Caimán health and welfare, enables the timely detection of alterations associated with inadequate enclosure hygiene, water quality, and feeding management, and provides technical evidence to guide prevention, control, and sanitary management measures aimed at reducing the likelihood of body condition deterioration and morbidity events associated with parasitosis. The general objective was to determine the presence of nematodes and other gastrointestinal parasites in Caimán crocodilus; a total of 20 samples were analyzed using a coproparasitological technique with taxonomic identification through microscopic observation of parasitic structures, under a quantitative, observational, and non-experimental descriptive methodology; the results showed that no gastrointestinal nematodes were detected, with a frequency of 0 % for Ascaridia spp., Strongyloides spp., and Crocodylia ascaridoids, and 100 % in the category “none identified,” while the presence of protozoa was detected in 20.0 % of the Caimáns, and when analyzed according to body condition, a higher proportion was observed in individuals with medium body condition (37.5 %), followed by a lower proportion in those with good body condition (11.1 %), with no cases in poor body condition, and no statistically significant association between body condition and parasite presence (p = 0.436), suggesting that the observed descriptive differences may be attributed to sampling variation and individual exposure patterns rather than to a consistent effect of body condition in this population.