title: Prevalence of Gastrointestinal Parasites in Civets of Fragmented Rainforest Patches in Anamalai Hills, Western Ghats, India.
abstract: :  Parasitism, driven by anthropogenic habitat modifications, is being increasingly recognized as a major threat to wildlife. Unfortunately, even baseline parasite data for most wildlife species are lacking in India, including the civets, which are particularly vulnerable due to their proximity to human habitations. Civet fecal samples were collected from 10 forest fragments that vary in size and disturbance level in Anamalai Hills, Western Ghats, India. These samples were screened for the presence of gastrointestinal parasites using fecal floatation and fecal sedimentation techniques. From a total of 180 civet fecal samples, 15 gastrointestinal parasite taxa were recovered, and these species are also known to infect domesticated animals. Additionally, small, disturbed forest fragments recorded higher mean gastrointestinal parasite taxa and greater prevalence when compared to large, undisturbed forest fragments, indicating a potential relationship between anthropogenic activities and gastrointestinal parasitism of civets in the Anamalai Hills.
authors.affiliation: *   Laboratory for the Conservation of Endangered Species, CSIR-Center for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Uppal Road, Hyderbad 500007, India.
authors.forename: Debapriyo
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Chakraborty
authors.affiliation: *   Laboratory for the Conservation of Endangered Species, CSIR-Center for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Uppal Road, Hyderbad 500007, India.
authors.forename: Sunil
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tiwari
authors.affiliation: *   Laboratory for the Conservation of Endangered Species, CSIR-Center for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Uppal Road, Hyderbad 500007, India.
authors.forename: D Mahender
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Reddy
authors.affiliation: *   Laboratory for the Conservation of Endangered Species, CSIR-Center for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Uppal Road, Hyderbad 500007, India.
authors.forename: Govindhaswamy
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Umapathy
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005243:Feces / Q000469:parasitology; D005767:Gastrointestinal Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D007194:India / Q000453:epidemiology; D007411:Intestinal Diseases, Parasitic / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000469:parasitology / Q000662:veterinary*; D015995:Prevalence; D065947:Rainforest; D045949:Viverridae / Q000469:parasitology*