Abstract:
Trichinella zimbabwensis has been found naturally infecting crocodiles
(Crocodylus niloticus) in Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Ethiopia and South Africa,
as well as monitor lizards (Varanus niloticus) in Zimbabwe. The reports on
natural infections were mostly accidental rather than structured surveys and
involved very few animals. Previous surveillance studies in South Africa
reported a 38.5% prevalence of T. zimbabwensis among wild crocodiles tested
from the Mpumalanga province and Kruger National Park (KNP). No studies
have been conducted to date on the geographical distribution and occurrence
of T. zimbabwensis in wild crocodiles and varans in countries in southern Africa.
Recent outbreaks of pansteatitis in crocodile populations of the KNP, South
Africa, provided an opportunity to conduct a more structured survey aimed at
elucidating the occurrence and distribution of T. zimbabwensis in culled wild
crocodile populations within the KNP. Results from this study showed that
T. zimbabwensis occurred in 10 out of 12 culled crocodiles form the KNP. The
results also showed that the natural distribution of T. zimbabwensis in crocodiles
includes all the major river systems in the KNP. The predilection sites of larvae in
muscles followed a different pattern in naturally infected crocodiles compared to
observations in experimentally infected mammalian hosts.
