Ostrich farming is a worldwide practice and an internationally developing industry. Among challenges in livestock production are the parasitic infections. The present study aimed to the investigation of the gastrointestinal parasites biota and prevalence in ostriches raised in different areas of Greece. A total of 141 clinically healthy ostriches originating from four different localities of Greece were coprologically examined for parasites of the gastrointestinal tract. Coprological examination revealed a considerably high rate of infection (65.9%) with protozoa; however, no helminths (trematodes, cestodes and nematodes) were detected. In detail, cysts of Entamoeba struthionis have been found in 57.4% of the examined birds. Moreover, 39.0% of sampled ostriches harboured cysts of Balantioides coli (syn. Balantidium coli), while oocysts of Cryptosporidium sp. were detected at a low percentage (2.1%). Partial sequences of the small subunit rRNA (16S rRNA) gene and the ITS region were amplified from pooled Entamoeba and Balantioides positive samples, respectively, confirming for the first time the presence of Entamoeba struthionis and Balantioides coli in ostriches in Greece. Some of these parasitoses require attention as they may affect productivity performance of the animals in commercial ostrich farming and possibly pose disease risk for livestock and humans.
Keywords: Balantioides coli; Entamoeba struthionis; Epizootiology; Gastrointestinal parasites; Greece; Ostrich.
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