Parasitosis in wild felids of India: an overview

Being a tropical country, India provides an ideal environment for the development of parasites as well as for vector populations resulting in a high degree of parasitism in animals and humans. But only a few detailed studies and sporadic case reports are available on the prevalence of parasites in captive wild animals, and the knowledge of parasites and parasitic diseases in wild animals is still in its infancy. The family felidae comprises the subfamily felinae and pantherinae, and within those are all large and small cats. Most of the available reports on parasites in felids describe helminthic infections, which caused morbidities and occasional mortalities in the infected animals. The parasites most frequently found include the nematodes Toxocara, Toxascaris, Baylisascaris, Strongyloides, Gnathostoma, Dirofilaria and Galonchus, the trematode Paragonimus and the cestodes Echinococcus and Taenia. Almost all the studies identified the parasitic stages by classical parasitological techniques and only a few new studies confirmed the species using molecular techniques. Amongst the protozoan parasitic infections reported in felids: babesiosis, trypanosomiasis and coccidiosis are most commonly found. Most of the parasite species found in felids are transmissible to humans (zoonosis) and therefore have public health significance. Routine monitoring of the presence of parasites in captive wild felids is imperative for the formulation and implementation of measures to prevent and control parasitic infections and the transmission of these parasites to humans. This review summarizes the available reports and highlights deficient areas, which require further systematic investigation.