Conclusions and Literature Cited

Conclusions

All mongooses examined were in very good health. No animals exhibited signs of any dermatological problems like mange or ticks. More than 70% of mongooses captured had flea dirt present and significantly more males than females exhibited signs of flea infestation. This may be a result of the small sample size or the biology of mongoose. Males don’t participate in rearing young, appear to be promiscuous (Nellis and Everard, 1983), and travel greater distances than do females (Hoagland, pers. obs.). Pregnant females kept in captivity remove all nesting materials from nest boxes and appear to be fastidious about keeping nest areas very clean (Horst, pers. comm.). We have also observed two mongoose together in the field and when multiple females are placed together in a single enclosure they do not fight. Therefore, it is possible that females are social groomers and remove more fleas than do males. It is also possible that because males move greater distances than do females, they come into contact more frequently with cat fleas.

Fecal analyses were all negative. I expected some to be positive due to the flea dirt present. Fleas carry tapeworm segments in there body and when an animal ingests a flea the tapeworm hatches in the gut. The tapeworm eggs are passed out with the fecal matter to help the parasite spread.

I also did not find evidence of any tick attachments on the skin or mange. I did dissect a deceased mongoose and found no evidence of any internal parasites in the heart, intestines or kidneys. The stomach of the deceased animal did contain a rat!

Literature Cited

Nellis, D.W. and C.O.R. Everard. 1983. The biology of the mongoose in the Caribbean. Studies of the fauna of Curacao and other Caribbean islands, LXIV: 1-162.

Torchin, ME., K.D. Lafferty, A.P. Dobson., V.J. McKenzie, & A.M. Kuris. 2003. Introduced species and their missing parasites. Nature, 421: 628-630.