A survey on parasites of long-eared hedgehog (Hemiechinus auritus) in northeast of Iran

As there appeared to be no data available on parasite infection of Hedgehogs in the region and considering the potential threat of Hedgehogs for animal and public health, the present study was carried out using biological samples and necropsy findings collected from long-eared hedgehog captured in Mashhad city in the northeast of Iran. During the study 23 dead hedgehogs were collected randomly from different regions of Mashhad County. Following autopsy of these animals, observation for enteric parasites was carefully done. At the same time, 38 live hedgehogs were captured at this region and after anesthetizing of them, their ectoparasites were removed. The captured animals were released after recovery. All of studied animals were found to be infected with at least one of the parasites. The endoparasites removed from dead hedgehogs were: Oliganthorhynchus erinacei, Nephridiorhynchus major, Hymenolepis erinacei and Crenosoma striatum. The ectoparasites found on live studied animals according to their abundance were Rhipicephalus turanicus, Haemaphysalis erinacei and Echidnophaga gallinacea. The results of this study will contribute to our understanding of the parasites infecting Hemiechinus auritus in Iran. These results also suggest that pet owners especially those keep hedgehog should be aware about hazards that may pose by these animals.