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The development, composition and maintenance of experimental populations of Haemonchus contortus in sheep

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 April 2009

W. J. Coadwell
Affiliation:
Biochemistry Department, ARC Institute of Animal Physiology, Babraham, Cambridge CB2 4AT
P. F. V. Ward
Affiliation:
Biochemistry Department, ARC Institute of Animal Physiology, Babraham, Cambridge CB2 4AT

Summary

Clun Forest sheep, aged between 3 and 18 months and worm-free from birth, were given a single dose of 25000 infective larvae of the nematode Haemonchus contortus. The host animals were killed between 4 and 100 days after infection and the nematode populations were examined to determine size and composition. The relation between worm body length, dry weight and age was studied and growth curves were constructed. Variations in the sex ratio for infections of different ages were noted. No evidence was found for a relation between rate of growth and population density. The rate of expulsion was determined and its variability discussed.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1981

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References

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