Survey of the Prevalence and Diversity of Intestinal Parasites Through Scat Analysis of Canids at Letterkenny Army Depot, Franklin County, Pennsylvania

The increased spread of Echinococcus multilocularis into novel areas has created a need for early detection and monitoring of parasites within wild canid populations. In order to survey the prevalence and relative intensity of helminthes in wild canid populations, coyote, red fox and gray fox scat samples were collected during February and March 2012 at Letterkenny Army Depot, in south central Pennsylvania, USA. Using standard fecal flotation, 13 different parasites were identified in 75 fecal samples, of which 40% of coyote (n=35) and 72.5% (n=40) of fox samples contained evidence of at least one parasite. This represents 8 new species now known to parasitize coyotes and foxes in Letterkenny Army Depot when compared with previous published research. Eleven of the 13 parasites identified were shared between coyotes and foxes. Fox samples had a higher prevalence of parasitism than did coyote samples; however, the relative intensity of parasitism was greater in coyote samples. While parasitism with Taenia sp., Capillaria sp., Isospora sp., Toxocara canis, Toxascaris leonina, Strongyloides stercoralis and Uncinaria stenocephala is likely detrimental, we did not identify Echinococcus sp. or other zoonotic parasites. We recommend continued surveillance for parasites found within wild canids through standard fecal flotation techniques as well as molecular and specific DNA analyses.