The helminth fauna of the Eurasian goshawk ( <i>Accipiter gentilis</i> ) in northwest Russia

Abstract The challenges in researching the parasite fauna of rare and red-listed species, such as the Eurasian goshawk ( Accipiter gentilis ), render the study of accidental findings of these birds highly valuable and important. This paper discusses the results regarding the species diversity and occurrence of helminths in the Eusarian goshawk in northwest Russia. In July and September 2024, parasites were collected from the respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts of two birds that had died in the City of Petrozavodsk and the Village of Porosozero. This is the first report of the occurrence of nine helminth species (trematodes Neodiplostomum attenuatum , Srtigea falconis , Prosthogonimus cuneatus and nematodes Cyathostoma americana , Eucoleus dispar , Porrocaecum depressum , Baruscapillaria falconis , Capillaria tenuissima , Microtetrameres sp.) in the Eurasian goshawk, which is actively expanding its distribution in northwest Russia. Karelia is the only region where the trematode P. cuneatus has been found in the Eurasian goshawk. With the new findings, we provide an overview of Eurasian goshawk’s parasite fauna, with reference to available information on other regions of Russia and Europe. A list of 43 helminth species documented for hawks has been compiled using published data. Another important outcome of our study is that, having analysed the birds, we managed to describe the ecological characteristics of the birds adapting to urbanised environments (cities and rural communities). This adaptation likely involves changes in the birds’ dietary spectrum and, accordingly, the species composition and infection rates of their common helminth parasites.