The study was conducted to evaluate the incidence of endoparasitic infestation in free ranging and captive Asian elephants in Odisha covering three seasons namely, summer (April-June), rainy (July-September) and winter (November-January). The locations were Chandaka Wildlife Sanctuary, Khordha; Satkosia Wildlife Sanctuary, Angul; Similipal Biosphere Reserve, Mayurbhanj for free-ranging, and Nandankanan Zoological Park, Bhubaneswar for captive elephants. Faecal samples were analysed by direct smear method, sedimentation technique and floatation method. The captive location showed a markedly lower endoparasitic infestation rate than any of the free-range locations, in every season; the differences being significant (P ≤ 0.01) in summer and rainy only. Thus, as regards to the seasonal influence, for each of the free-range and captive locations, the highest rate of infestation was observed in summer followed by rainy and winter.
Key words: Endoparasitic infestation, Asian elephant, Faecal, Free ranging, Captive and Seasonal influence
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