Frequency of gastrointestinal helminths in synanthropic rodents captured in the Barranquilla Zoo

Objective. The aim of this work was to characterize and describe the frequency of the gastrointestinal parasites in synanthropic rodents captured at the Barranquilla Zoo.Materials and methods. The rodents were captured using Tomahawk traps with the help of non-toxic bait and subsequently sacrificed by isoflurane inhalation. The diagnosis and identification of parasites in the intestinal contents was performed using direct examination in NaCl (0.9%), modified Sheather's flotation, and modified Ritchie's sedimentation techniques. Results. A total of 34 rodents (Rattus rattus) were captured, with an infection frequency of 82.4% (95% CI = 68.8–95.8%, 28/34). The most prevalent parasites were nematodes (63.2%, 95% CI = 49.2–77.2%, 31/49), followed by protozoans (20.4%, 95% CI = 8.7–32.1%, 10/49) and cestodes (16.3%, 95% CI = 5.6–27%, 8/49), with significant differences between the three groups (χ² = 20.7, p< 0.01). Among the nematodes, Strongylidae was the most prevalent family (24/31), followed by Ascarididae (4/31), Ancylostomatidae (1/31), Oxyuridae (1/31), and Trichostrongylidae (1/31); for the protozoans, the most prevalent families were Eimeriidae (6/10) and Entamoebidae (4/10), and for the cestodes, the only family found was the Hymenolepididae (8/8) family. Conclusions. The R. rattus species was the only species of synanthropic rodents caught in the Barranquilla Zoo; because it was infected with various species of gastrointestinal parasites, it should be considered a risk factor for the transmission of these parasites to humans and other animals in the zoo.