Intestinal helminth communities in the green lizard, Lacerta viridis, from Bulgaria

Abstract

AbstractA data set comprising individual host/parasite lists from 100 Lacerta viridis (Reptilia: Lacertidae) belonging to four isolated populations in Bulgaria was studied. A total of seven helminth species was recovered (Leptophallus nigrovenosus, Plagiorchis molini, Oswaldocruzia filiformis, Spauligodon extenuatus, Skrjabinelazia hoffmanni, Physaloptera clausa and Mesocestoides sp.). Lacerta viridis is a new host record for the first five of these species. Communities of intestinal helminths of L. viridis consist of a few species which resulted in a low species richness, abundance and diversity of infracommunities, which exhibit substantial homogeneity among the four samples. A similar pattern of dominance of two nematode species leading to a relatively high community similarity at both infra- and component community levels was observed. While intestinal helminth communities in lizards from ‘marginal’ habitats were dominated by the host generalist, O. filiformis, those in hosts from ‘typical’ habitats were dominated by the lizard specialist S. extenuatus. The results indicate that the characteristics of the host's habitat are important in determining the composition rather than structure of intestinal helminth communities in L. viridis.