Veterinary session

The roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) is the most common wild ruminant in Hungary, which often lives in or near human-populated areas, therefore gathering knowledge of its parasitic infections or diseases of other origins is of prime importance. Pathogens transmitted by vectors deserve special attention, after all, parallel to climate change, the habitat of blood-sucking arthropods is also constantly altering. The aim of our study was to investigate the parasites present in the blood of roe deers in Hungary, while we paid particular attention to detect the possible presence of Setaria tundra and Babesia capreoli. Since S. tundra is a vector-borne parasite, it is not surprising that surveys confirming the presence of the mentioned nematode in Hungary have so far been carried out only in mosquitoes. In our study, samples of peripheral blood of roe deers were used to detect the parasites. The blood samples were collected from different parts of the country with the help of individual hunters and hunting associations. To detect babesiosis, blood smears were prepared from the samples which were stained according to Giemsa. Modified Knott's test was used for the diagnosis of S. tundra infection. In our research, we examined the blood of a total of 54 animals, of which we found S. tundra microfilariae in the blood of seven roe deers. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first documented time that S. tundra microfilariae were detected from roe deer in Hungary. Although the infected roe deers originated from the Western-Transdanubian region of Hungary (Zalaegerszeg district, Körmend district, Kőszeg district, Szombathely district) and the Pest region (Gyál district), based on the data from neighboring countries, it can not be ruled out that the infection is present in the entire territory of our country. In our opinion, the detection of S. tundra with the modified Knott's test is a very effective and fast test method that can even be performed on live animals. This method offers a much cheaper and faster alternative to molecular tests. The presence of B. capreoli or other Babesia species has not been confirmed.