Helminth fauna of mouse-like rodents in the territory of Moscow City

Abstract

Conditions of the urban environment have a significant impact on the ecology of animals, including helminth communities. The response of the helminth community to ecological imbalance and their adaptation to life in the urban environment remain an urgent problem in parasitology. In this study, we aimed to compare the species diversity and distribution of helminths in urban forest parks with varying degrees of anthropogenic pressure. In urbanized territories of 5 locations of the city of Moscow, the infestation parameters of model rodent species were assessed in comparison with a natural, slightly disturbed territory (the scientific and experimental base “Chernogolovka”). In the four most common rodent species (n = 158), Apodemus agrarius, Sylvaemus uralensis, Microtus arvalis, and Clethrionomys glareolus, caught by Hero's traps, the gastrointestinal tract was removed, the number and species of parasites were determined, and the infestation was assessed by 3 parameters. The species composition of helminths and the presence of three parasite classes in the composition of the helminth fauna of the studied species expectedly corresponded to the characteristics of disturbed areas. In addition, a change in the dominant helminth species (H. polygyrus to H. Spumosa) was noted, which indicated a significant influence of the helminth fauna of synanthropic species on the composition of the parasite communities of wild species living in the city. Our study contributes to the accumulation of information on the species composition of endoparasite communities of murine rodents in the city of Moscow, which is important for compiling an up-to-date epidemiological picture of the city.