Gastrointestinal helminths of King penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) at Crozet Archipelago

Communities of helminths are known to be related to feeding behaviors of hosts. While climate change and overfishing can impact food availability for Antarctic piscivorous predators, knowledge about infectious and parasitic diseases among Antarctic species is scarce or fragmentary. We studied the helminth community of King penguins (Aptenodytes patagonicus) from the Crozet Archipelago, the main breeding area of the species. Based on a sample of 41 individuals found freshly dead from predation or starvation, the gastrointestinal helminth community in King penguins was composed of 1 species of cestode (Tetrabothrius wrighti) and 2 species of nematodes (Tetrameres wetzeli and Contracaecum heardi). Cestodes formed the core of the helminth community (97.5% of worms collected) with a prevalence of infestation of 100% and a mean intensity of 178.6 worms per host. Sources of infestation and pathologies caused by these worms are also discussed.