Abstract

Introduction: The distribution and prevalence of gastrointestinal helminths in African catfish (Clarias gariepinus) from Ajiwa reservoir, Katsina State, Nigeria was investigated between March and August 2021, to understand the health status of the fish, potential risk to their existence and safety of consumption of fish from the water body.

Methods: A total of 162 live African catfish species were collected from artisanal fishermen from three major landing sites on the reservoir. The fish were identified and separated based on sex before being transferred live to the Fish Biology laboratory, Federal University Dutsin-Ma, Katsina State for further evaluation. The fish were dissected and the guts were removed for examination of the gastrointestinal helminths.

Results: A total of 149 helminths were collected from the 132 infected fish. The helminths belong to nematode and cestode groups with nematode dominating with three species and 59.06% abundance. Capillaria species, a nematode was the dominant species representing 29.53% of the helminths from the water body. A higher amount (57.72%) of the helminths were recovered from the intestine. The prevalence of the parasitic worms was affected by sex (p=0.001) with females having a higher prevalence (91.76%). There was no significant difference due to the sampling location (p=0.076) and length of the fish (p=0.298). However, weight showed a significant association with the prevalence (p=0.019) and the prevalence decreased with an increase in the size of the fish.                  

Significance: Although the distribution and abundance of the gastrointestinal helminths in the Ajiwa reservoir can be said to be low relative to the number of fish examined, however, the prevalence is high and something of concern. Sex and weight are important factors strongly associated with the prevalence of parasitic helminths in the reservoir.

Keywords: Ajiwa reservoir, Cestodes, Clarias gariepinus, Nematodes, Parasites

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