A COMPREHENSIVE AND COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF THE HELMINTH FAUNA OF THE DOMINANT SPECIES OF COLONIAL SEABIRDS ON THE MURMANSK COAST

摘要

The results of many-year long studies on the helminth fauna of the dominant species of colonial seabirds (common guillemots, Briinniclrs guillemots, kittiwakes, great black-backed gulls and herring gulls) in the western, central and eastern parts of the Murmansk coast are presented. 52 species of parasitic worms (18 trematodes, 21 cestodes, 11 nematodes, 2 acanthocephalans) were found. 32, 43 and 34 species of helminthes were registered in the western, central and eastern regions, respectively. All along the coastal zone of Murman, 20 species of seabird parasites were found. Local nidi of bird infestation by the trematode Mari-trema arenaria and by the cestode Laricanthus lateralis in the western part of the Murmansk coast were revealed. The highest species diversity of helminthes (38 species) was typical of the herring gull, the lowest (7 species) of the common guillemot. 4 species of parasites were shared by the helminth faunas of all bird species. A significant number of infestations were mixed (2 or 3 bird species complexes with helminth species shared in different combinations). The greatest similarity in the helminth faunas is pairwise characteristic of the common guillemot and Brunnich's guillemot, as well as of the great black-backed gull and the herring gull. A few oncospecific parasitic worms found only in one bird species were noted. The features of and likely causes for the geographical distribution and specificity of helminthes were analyzed, and a comprehensive assessment of the parasitological situation in the coastal zone of Murman was conducted.