title: Comparative pathology of parasitic infections in free-ranging and captive pit vipers (Bothrops jararaca).
abstract: Between June 1997 and May 1998, 47 pit vipers (Bothrops jararaca) (Group A) were euthanased when they were brought to the Instituto Butantan by farmers, and examined postmortem; during the same period, 91 snakes of the same species (group B) were examined after they had died in an outdoor serpentarium. The majority of the parasites encountered were nematodes; lungworms, Rhabdias vellardi, and the intestinal hookworm Kalicephalus inermis were the most common. Some of the snakes in group A were heavily infested, but their lesions were mild, whereas in group B the parasites were generally accompanied by severe lesions. The parasites with a direct life cycle were more common than those with obligatory intermediate hosts, and the snakes were more commonly infected during the hotter and more humid seasons.
authors.affiliation: Instituto Butantan - Laboratório de Herpetologia, Av Dr Vital, Brasil 1500, São Paulo, CEP 05503-900, Brazil.
authors.forename: K Fernandes
authors.initials: KF
authors.lastname: Grego
authors.forename: C H
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Gardiner
authors.forename: J L
authors.initials: JL
authors.lastname: Catão-Dias
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000835:Animals, Wild; D000836:Animals, Zoo; D017837:Bothrops; D001938:Brazil / Q000453:epidemiology; D009348:Nematoda / Q000302:isolation & purification; D009349:Nematode Infections / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000473:pathology / Q000662:veterinary*; D012621:Seasons