Abstract

The parasites of 16 Magellan geese (Chloephaga picta picta: 8 females and 8 males), captured in May 2002 in the Commune of Río Verde, Province of Magallanes, XII Región, Chile, were studied. All the birds from this study were found positive for the endoparasitic nematode Heterakis dispar. In one of the birds, proglotides were found which, from a morphological analysis, belong to the family Hymenolepidae. The total number of specimens of H. dispar was greater in male geese than in females. The female/male ratio was 1.22. The larva/adult ratio was 0.41. No parasites were found in a study of goose faeces. An 87.5% of the birds were parasitised by one or more of the following louse species: Holomenopon brevithoracicum, Anaticola marginella, Anatoecus dentatus and Anatoecus icterodes, all of them belonging to the Order Phthiraptera. All these species represent new louse records from Magellan geese for Chile, as well as a new host-louse record for A. dentatus on C. picta