The Prevalence of Liver Flukes in Slaughtered Camels (Camelus dromedarius) of Different Iraqi Governorates

A retrospective study covered the period of 10 years (2006-2015) to investigate the prevalence of liver flukes in camels reared in different governorates of Iraq. A total of (7972) slaughtered camels were inspected macroscopically for liver flukes’ infestation, out of which (118) slaughtered camels (1.48%) were infected with liver flukes. The prevalence of this parasitic disease varied according to the governorate and the year of study, but in general, Dhi Qar governorate recorded the highest prevalence among the other governorates mainly in 2010 and 2013 which revealed (3.1% and 2.5% respectively), followed by Al Muthanna governorate (2.3%) in 2008. This could be due in part to the areas associated with marshes and wetlands in the Dhi Qar governorate which are leading to an increase in the capacity of the snails as intermediate hosts to reproduce rapidly providing the opportunity to spread the infective stage of liver flukes and pollute the grass. The current results provide baseline data for the prevalence of this parasitic disease in camels of different Iraqi governorates, which supply the opportunity for future monitoring and evaluation leading to control programs of liver flukes in Iraq.