Occurrence of parasitic protozoa in wild waterfowl in southern coastal Caspian sea lagoons

Protozoa are common in poultry and other birds and can cause mild to severe disease. This study was concerned with the prevalence of parasitic protozoa in wild waterfowl in Caspian sea lagoons in the North of Iran.Atotal of 293 waterfowl belonging to various genera including Tadorna tadorna (common shelduck),Aythya fuligula (Tufted duck), Aythya ferina (Common puchard), Spatula clypeata (Shoveler), Anser anser (greylag goose), CygnusCygnus (Whooper Swan), Anas strepera (Gadwall), Anas Penelope (Eurasian Widgeon), Anas crecca (common teal), and Anas platyrhynchos (mallard) were sampled and tested for intestinal, tracheal, and blood protozoa between winter 2010 and spring 2011. The results showed that 184 birds of 293 (62.8%) harbored protozoan parasites. The highest prevalence of protozoan contamination belonged to Giardia spp (24.2%) and the lowest belonged to Haemoproteus spp. (6.1%). Thricomunas gallinea, Plasmodium spp., and Cryptosporidium spp. were found in 7.2%, 8.2%, and 17% of waterfowl, respectively. Moreover, statistical analyses showed that the highest rate of giardiosis was in female Aythya fuligula (43.75%). However,tricomuniasis belonged to Anas crecca (30.5%). On the other hand, female Cygnus cygnus had the highest rate of cryptosporidiosis (44.7%), and more infection to Haemoproteus and Plasmodium spp. were observed in Anas platyrhynchos, concurrently. Migration of various species of waterfowl toward the northern parts of Iran has an important impact on parasitic diseases in birds and human in these regions.