Premium
High Frequency of Leaf Swallowing and its Relationship to Intestinal Parasite Expulsion in “Village” Chimpanzees at B ulindi, U ganda
Author(s) -
Mclennan Matthew R.,
Huffman Michael A.
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
american journal of primatology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.988
H-Index - 81
eISSN - 1098-2345
pISSN - 0275-2565
DOI - 10.1002/ajp.22017
Subject(s) - biology , nematode , predation , parasite hosting , feces , zoology , troglodytes , swallowing , veterinary medicine , eimeria , host (biology) , ecology , microbiology and biotechnology , medicine , dentistry , world wide web , computer science
Self‐medication by great apes to control intestinal parasite infections has been documented at sites across A frica. Chimpanzees ( P an troglodytes ) swallow the leaves of certain plant species whole, without chewing. Previous studies demonstrated a relationship between chimpanzee leaf swallowing and expulsion of nematode worms ( O esophagostomum sp.) and tapeworms ( B ertiella sp.) in dung. We investigated the relationship between leaf swallowing and parasite expulsion in chimpanzees inhabiting a fragmented forest–farm mosaic at B ulindi, U ganda. During 13 months whole undigested leaves occurred in chimpanzee dung at a considerably higher frequency (10.4% of dungs) than at other sites (0.4–4.0%). Leaf swallowing occurred year‐round and showed no pronounced seasonality. Chimpanzees egested adults of multiple species of O esophagostomum (including O . stephanostomum ) and proglottids of two tapeworms— B ertiella sp. and probably R aillietina sp. The latter may not be a true infection, but the byproduct of predation on domestic fowl. Compared to previous studies, the co‐occurrence of whole leaves and parasites in chimpanzee dung was low. Whereas the presence of leaves in dung increased the probability of adult nematode expulsion, no association between leaf swallowing and the shedding of tapeworm proglottids was apparent. Anthropogenic habitat changes have been linked to alterations in host–parasite interactions. At B ulindi, deforestation for agriculture has increased contact between apes and people. Elevated levels of leaf swallowing could indicate these chimpanzees are especially vulnerable to parasite infections, possibly due to environmental changes and/or increased stress levels arising from a high frequency of contact with humans. Frequent self‐medication by chimpanzees in a high‐risk environment could be a generalized adaptation to multiple parasite infections that respond differently to the behavior. Future parasitological surveys of apes and humans at B ulindi are needed for chimpanzee health monitoring and management, and to investigate the potential for disease transmission among apes, people, and domestic animals. Am. J. Primatol. 74:642–650, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.