High prevalence of large spiny-tailed protostrongylid larvae in Iberian red deer

The prevalence and abundance of protostrongylid larvae (Nematoda: Protostrongylidae) in 173 fecal samples of Iberian red deer (Cervus elaphus hispanicus Erxleben, 1777) are presented. Large (401(365-425)+/-24 micom) spiny-tailed larvae, comparable to the descriptions of first stage Elaphostrongylus cervi larvae were found in 66.47+/-0.7% of the samples (range 6.8-100%, depending on the locality). The overall abundance of larvae in faces was overdispersed with an average of 24.94+/-96.23 (range 0-1202) larvae per gram, and ranged between sampling sites from 0.11+/-0.43 to 96+/-75 larvae per gram. This is the first report of large spiny-tailed protostrongylid larvae in deer from the western Mediterranean.