title: Male-biased gastrointestinal parasitism in a nearly monomorphic mountain ungulate.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Pyrenean chamois (Rupicapra pyrenaica pyrenaica) is a nearly monomorphic mountain ungulate with an unbiased sex-specific overwinter adult survival. Few differences in gastrointestinal parasitism have been reported by coprology as yet. This study aims to assess diversity, prevalence, intensity of infection and aggregation of gastrointestinal nematodes in male and female adult chamois. We expect no differences in the parasite infection rates between sexes.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Gastrointestinal tracts of 28 harvested Pyrenean chamois in the Catalan Pyrenees (autumn 2012 and 2013) were necropsied and sexual differences in the diversity and structure of parasite community, prevalence, intensity of infection, and richness were investigated. We found 25 helminth species belonging to 13 different genera.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Contrary to our expectations, male chamois showed different parasite communities, higher prevalence, intensity of infection and richness than females. Such sexual differences were clear irrespective of age of individuals. Hence, male chamois must cope with a more diverse and abundant parasite community than females, without apparent biological cost. Further research will be required to confirm this hypothesis.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Sanidad Animal, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de Murcia, Murcia, Spain. jordi.m.guijosa@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Jordi
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Martínez-Guijosa
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Sanidad Animal, Facultad de Veterinaria, Universidad de Murcia, Murcia, Spain. cmcpleit@um.es.
authors.forename: Carlos
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Martínez-Carrasco
authors.affiliation: Servei d'Ecopatologia de Fauna Salvatge (SEFaS), Wildlife Health Service - Departament de Medicina i Cirugia Animal, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain. jordi.lopez.olvera@uab.cat.
authors.forename: Jorge Ramón
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: López-Olvera
authors.affiliation: Servei d'Ecopatologia de Fauna Salvatge (SEFaS), Wildlife Health Service - Departament de Medicina i Cirugia Animal, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain. xfdezaguilar@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Xavier
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Fernández-Aguilar
authors.affiliation: Servei d'Ecopatologia de Fauna Salvatge (SEFaS), Wildlife Health Service - Departament de Medicina i Cirugia Animal, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain. pepins7@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Andreu
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Colom-Cadena
authors.affiliation: Servei d'Ecopatologia de Fauna Salvatge (SEFaS), Wildlife Health Service - Departament de Medicina i Cirugia Animal, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain. ocabezon@yahoo.com.
authors.forename: Oscar
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Cabezón
authors.affiliation: Servei d'Ecopatologia de Fauna Salvatge (SEFaS), Wildlife Health Service - Departament de Medicina i Cirugia Animal, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain. gregorio.mentaberres@uab.cat.
authors.forename: Gregorio
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Mentaberre
authors.affiliation: Departament de Sanitat i d'Anatomia Animals, Bellaterra, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB), Bellaterra, Spain. david.ferrer@uab.cat.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ferrer
authors.affiliation: Servei d'Ecopatologia de Fauna Salvatge (SEFaS), Wildlife Health Service - Departament de Medicina i Cirugia Animal, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain. roser.velarde@uab.cat.
authors.forename: Roser
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Velarde
authors.affiliation: Servei d'Ecopatologia de Fauna Salvatge (SEFaS), Wildlife Health Service - Departament de Medicina i Cirugia Animal, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain. diana.gasso@uab.cat.
authors.forename: Diana
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Gassó
authors.affiliation: Centre National d'Études et de Recherche Appliquée Faune de Montagne, Office National de la Chasse et de la Faune Sauvage (ONCFS), Juvignac, France. mathieu.garel@oncfs.gouv.fr.
authors.forename: Mathieu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Garel
authors.affiliation: Dipartimento de Produzioni Animali, Epidemiologia ed Ecologia, Universtità di Torino, Turin, Italy. luca.rossi@unito.it.
authors.forename: Luca
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Rossi
authors.affiliation: Servei d'Ecopatologia de Fauna Salvatge (SEFaS), Wildlife Health Service - Departament de Medicina i Cirugia Animal, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain. santiago.lavin@uab.cat.
authors.forename: Santiago
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lavín
authors.affiliation: Servei d'Ecopatologia de Fauna Salvatge (SEFaS), Wildlife Health Service - Departament de Medicina i Cirugia Animal, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Bellaterra, Spain. emmanuel.serrano.ferron@gmail.com.|Departamento de Biologia & CESAM, Universidade de Aveiro, Aveiro, Portugal. emmanuel.serrano.ferron@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Emmanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Serrano
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D005767:Gastrointestinal Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D008297:Male; D010273:Parasitic Diseases, Animal / Q000453:epidemiology*; D048608:Rupicapra; D012727:Sex Characteristics; D013030:Spain / Q000453:epidemiology