LE3 .A278 2014

2014

McAlpine, Donald
Wilson, Brian

Acadia University

Bachelor of Science

Honours

Biology

Biology

The native population of beaver (Castor canadensis) on Prince Edward Island (PEI), Canada is believed to have been extirpated before 1800 through human activity. The beavers that are now widespread on PEI are a consequence of reintroductions of the species by humans. A reintroduction in the late 1940s from New Brunswick was highly successful. There have been no previous investigations of the helminths of beaver on PEI. The nematodes Travassosius americanus and Castorstrongylus castoris, as well as the trematodes, Stichorchis subtriquetrus, Echinostoma revolutum, and Stephanoproraoides lawi, are known to parasitize beavers in the Atlantic region. The purpose of the study was to investigate the species diversity, geographic distribution, prevalence and intensity of gastrointestinal parasite infections of beavers on PEI. Necropsies were performed on 50 beavers. Parasites were identified, removed, and collected. Travassosius americanus, Stichorchis subtriquetrus and Castorstrongylus castoris were found in sections of the beaver gastrointestinal tracts. The geographic distribution of infections throughout PEI was examined and illustrated graphically. In all beavers a prevalence of 94%, 72%, and 10% was found for each parasite respectively. Total mean intensities of infection of 559, 31 and 20 respectively were found for all beavers that had infections. Possible historical, ecological, and anthropogenic factors that may have influenced these findings were explored.

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https://scholar.acadiau.ca/islandora/object/theses:1089