Biodiversity of Nematoda parasites of vertebrates in Mexico

Abstract

The richness of nematode parasites of wild vertebrates of Mexico known so far consists of 402 nominal species, which account for 4.8% of the world's total. This group of helminths has been recorded in 720 localities in all states of Mexico, even though their representation is heterogeneous as states such as Aguascalientes have only 2 species, while others such as Chiapas have 86. The largest number of hosts studied corresponds to the Actinopterygii, with 167 species; however, the greatest richness of nematode species is found in mammals with 166 species. To complete the inventory of nematodes parasitic on wild vertebrates of Mexico is still a long and complex task. If the average rate of nematode species recorded by host reviewed (0.97) continues, and considering that there are 4 983 vertebrate species distributed in the country that have not been studied yet from the standpoint of nematology, we could estimate that at least 5 137 species of nematodes remain to be described in the country.