Authors: Wafa Abdullah I. Al-Megrin*, Dana Alshabanat, Haifa Alnajjar, Razan Almaamari, Shahla Alshaar
Received March 2024
Accepted for publication June 2024
Published June 2024 Volume 1:2 Pages 48—56
Checked for plagiarism Yes
Peer reviewer comments 2
Correspondence: waalmegrin@pnu.edu.sa
Abstract
Intestinal parasites are a major threat to the health of hosts, impacting their productivity. Falcons are considered a high-value innate wealth in various parts of the world, particularly in Saudi Arabia. The current study aimed to explore the prevalence of intestinal parasites in falcons by examining 125 stool samples from different types of falcons using the direct fecal smear method. The examination revealed 87.2% of the samples were infected with intestinal parasites. The overall parasite prevalence was as follows: serratospiculum seurati 47.2%, caryospora spp. 46.4%, strigea falconis 6.4%, capillaria columbae 1.6%, cladotaenia globifera 5.6% ascaridia spp. 0.8%, and giardia 0.8%. Six infected samples were re-examined using the direct fecal stain and centrifugal flotation methods to compare the efficacy of these techniques. The results indicated that the direct fecal smear is one of the most effective methods for detecting parasitic infections. Chi-square tests of independence confirmed that there is no association between infection rate and the falcon's gender, age, and species and no association between falcon species and its susceptibility to infection with a particular parasite. Falcons are highly sensitive to environmental changes and can be easily affected by parasites, which can cause serious health issues and even death. Therefore, ensuring that the environment and food provided to falcons are safe and free from parasites is crucial.
KEYWORDS: Falcon, Saudi Arabia, Fecal, Intestinal parasites
