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Elaphostrongylus Cervi Infection in Moose (Alces Alces). Prevalence and Pathological Changes in Relation to Age and Season
Elaphostrongylus cervi-infeksjon hos elg (Alces alces). Prevalens og patologiske forandringer i forhold til alder og årstid
Acta Veterinaria Scandinavica volume 28, pages 157–164 (1987)
Abstract
The prevalence of Elaphostrongylus cervi infection in 8–10-month-old moose calves shot in March/April in Southeastern Norway was studied. The prevalence was compared with the prevalence of infection in 4–6- and 16–18-month-old animals shot in September/October. The location of adult worms, the pathological changes which they caused within the central nervous system and their pathogenicity, were also studied. Examination of 54 8–10-month-old moose calves revealed that 46 (85 %) of the calves were infected with E. cervi. Thus a considerable proportion of the calves in the areas investigated obviously became infected with E. cervi during their first summer season. The prevalence of infection seemed to decline from the age of 8–10 months in spring till the age of 16–18 months in autumn. No difference in mean carcass weight was found between infected and non-infected calves of comparable age. Within the central nervous system adult E. cervi and associated pathological changes were found exclusively in the epidural space. The high prevalence of E. cervi infection, the insignificant differences in general condition between infected and non-infected calves and the epidural location of adult worms suggest, when considered together, that E. cervi infection in general is only moderately pathogenic in moose.
The lungworm Varestrongylus alces was found in 18 of 70 moose calves examined (26 %).
Sammendrag
Prevalensen av Elaphostrongylus ccrvi-infeksjon ble undersøkt hos 8–10 måneder gamle elgkalver som ble avlivet til forskjellige forskningsformål i mars/april 1984 og 85 i Hedmark fylke. Den estimerte prevalensen ble sammenlignet med prevalensen hos 4–6 og 16–18 måneder gamle dyr avlivet under ordinær jakt i september/oktober 1983 og 84 i de samme områder. Lokalisasjonen av kjønnsmodne ormer i sentralnervesystemet, og de patologiske forandringene forårsaket av disse, ble undersekt hos 4–6 og 8–10 måneder gamle kalver og patogeniteten ble vurdert. En vesentlig del av elgkalvene i de aktuelle områdene så ut til å bli infisert med E. cervi i løpet av sin første sommer. Av 54 undersøkte 8–10 måneder gamle kalver var 85 % infisert med E. cervi. Videre så det ut til at prevalensen avtok med stigende alder. Det var ingen forskjell i gjennomsnittlig slaktevekt mellom infiserte og ikke infiserte kalver i samme aldersgruppe. Kjønnsmodne E. cervi og patologiske forandringer forårsaket av disse ble påvist i muskulaturen og epiduralt i sentralnervesystemet hos infiserte kalver. Høy prevalens uten iøynefallende kliniske symptomer, tilnærmelsesvis like slaktevekter hos infiserte og ikke-infiserte kalver og epidural lokalisasjonen av parasittene i CNS indikerer at E. cervi er moderat patogen for elgkalver.
Lungeormen Varestrongylus alces ble påvist hos 26 % av de undersøkte elgkalvene.
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Acknowledgement
This study was financially supported by the Norwegian Agricultural Research Council. I thank Professor O. Helle and Dr. G. Holt for essential help and guidance, Dr. B. Gjerde for linguistic advice and A. Stovner and A. M. Næshagen for technical assistance. Thanks are also due to local wildlife authorities and hunters in the municipalities included in this investigation.
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Stuve, G. Elaphostrongylus Cervi Infection in Moose (Alces Alces). Prevalence and Pathological Changes in Relation to Age and Season. Acta Vet Scand 28, 157–164 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03548236
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1186/BF03548236