title: Sentinels in a climatic outpost: Endoparasites in the introduced muskox (Ovibos moschatus wardi) population of Dovrefjell, Norway.
abstract: We assessed the occurrence of endoparasite eggs, cysts, oocysts and larvae in the muskox population of Dovrefjell, Norway, during June and August 2012. This population originates from 13 calves translocated from Eastern Greenland during the 1950s. A total of 167 faecal samples were collected, of which 49% came from identified individuals: 165 were examined by the Baermann and 95 by McMaster techniques and 167 by immunofluorescence antibody test (IFAT). Lungworm larvae recovered in the Baermanns were identified as Protostrongylidae (82%) and Dictyocaulus sp. (76%) based on morphology. Further molecular analyses of the ITS-2 region of two protostrongylid larvae from two muskoxen as Muellerius capillaris. Larval prevalence and intensity differed significantly between samples collected from the different age groups in June and August, with increasing prevalence and intensity in calves during the course of their first summer, whereas intensity decreased in adults from June to August. McMaster test and IFAT were used to determine the occurrence of infections with intestinal strongyles (84%), Moniezia spp. (24%), Nematodirus sp. (2%), Eimeria spp. (98%), Cryptosporidium sp. (14%) and Giardia duodenalis (7%). Molecular analyses of three isolates of Cryptosporidium and Giardia were identified as Cryptosporidium xiaoi and G. duodenalis assemblage A. Although infection intensity of all these intestinal parasites tended to be low, the high level of polyparasitism, together with the other challenges faced by this population living at the edge of their climatic range, means that these infections should not be ignored. The potential that M. capillaris, Cryptosporidium and Giardia infections derive from other sympatric host species (sheep and reindeer) is discussed.
authors.affiliation: Norwegian Veterinary Institute, Postboks 750 Sentrum, 0106 Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Rebecca K
authors.initials: RK
authors.lastname: Davidson
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Safety and Infection Biology, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Postboks 8146 Dep, 0033 Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Hanne
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Amundsen
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Safety and Infection Biology, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Postboks 8146 Dep, 0033 Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Nora Oftenes
authors.initials: NO
authors.lastname: Lie
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Safety and Infection Biology, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Postboks 8146 Dep, 0033 Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Katrien
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Luyckx
authors.affiliation: Department of Food Safety and Infection Biology, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, Postboks 8146 Dep, 0033 Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Lucy J
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Robertson
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecosystem and Public Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, 3330 Hospital Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta T2N 4N1, Canada.
authors.forename: Guilherme G
authors.initials: GG
authors.lastname: Verocai
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecosystem and Public Health, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, 3330 Hospital Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta T2N 4N1, Canada ; Canadian Cooperative Wildlife Health Centre - Alberta Node, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Calgary, 3330 Hospital Drive NW, Calgary, Alberta T2N 4N1, Canada.
authors.forename: Susan J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Kutz
authors.affiliation: Norwegian Veterinary Institute, Postboks 750 Sentrum, 0106 Oslo, Norway.
authors.forename: Bjørnar
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Ytrehus
keywords: Cryptosporidium; Gastrointestinal nematodes; Giardia; Lungworms; Ovibos moschatus; Polyparasitism