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The third newly discovered Eimeria species (Protozoa: Eimeriidae) described from wild reindeer, Rangifer tarandus, in Iceland

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Abstract

Fecal samples from 56 adult reindeer from eastern Iceland were examined for coccidian parasites. One Eimeria species was found in an 8-year-old male. Prevalence of infection was 1.8%; oocyst per gram (opg) value was 150. The coccidium was identified and described as a new species. The sporulated oocysts are ellipsoidal and average size is 30.0×21.1 μm. The oocyst has two distinct walls. Wall thickness is ~1.0 μm, and the outer wall, ~four-fifths of total thickness, is generally smooth and appears bicoloured. The outermost portion is light blue, and the innermost portion, yellow to pale brown. The inner wall is dark brown. Oocysts contain a prominent polar granule but are devoid of a micropyle. Oocysts enclose four spindle-shaped sporocysts with a rounded end opposite to the Stieda body. The average size of sporocysts is 15.3×6.5 μm. Sporocysts contain a granular sporocyst residuum that usually forms a cluster between the sporozoites and one large refractile body in each sporozoite.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to the staff of the East Iceland Environmental Research Institute and several reindeer hunters and their guides for collecting and providing the samples. We also thank D.W. Duszynski for valuable comments on the manuscript. The Research Fund of the University of Iceland, the Icelandic Research Fund for Graduate Students and the Division of Wildlife Management at the Environment and Food Agency in Iceland financially supported the study.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Laboratory of Parasitology, Institute for Experimental Pathology, Keldur, University of Iceland, IS-112, Reykjavik, Iceland

    B. Gudmundsdottir & K. Skirnisson

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  1. B. Gudmundsdottir
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  2. K. Skirnisson
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Correspondence to K. Skirnisson.

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Gudmundsdottir, B., Skirnisson, K. The third newly discovered Eimeria species (Protozoa: Eimeriidae) described from wild reindeer, Rangifer tarandus, in Iceland. Parasitol Res 99, 659–662 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-006-0210-3

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