Seasonal count and composition of nematode larvae of ruminant livestock on community pastures in Patiala district of Punjab

The prevalence of infective larvae of gastrointestinal nematodes on pastures naturally contaminated with faeces of grazing sheep/goat and cattle in Patiala areas was monitored during April 2010 to May 2011. Weekly herbage samples were collected from four selected pastures in Tripuri near water tank, Anand Nagar B, village Jassowal and Ranjeet Nagar in Patiala district and the infective larvae were identified and counted. The infective larvae (L3) recovered from the upper portion of herbage constituted H. contortus, Strongyloides spp., Oesophagostomum spp., Trichostrongylus spp., Bunostomum spp., Ostertagia spp. and Cooperia spp. Total pasture larval count was relatively higher during July to October with peak contamination in September which gradually declined from November onwards to become minimum in January. Larval count during the tenure of the study ranged from 54–2871 L3 with a highest peak (2871L3) during the month of September. Season wise, the contamination was highest in autumn (5221 L3) and lowest in winter (1675 L3). Larvae of H. contortus predominated (38.38%) out of total pasture larval count (15,481L3) followed by Strongyloides spp. (27.06%), Oesophagostomum spp. (12.76%), Trichostrongylus spp. (11.84%), Bunostomum spp. (4.65%), Ostertagia spp. (2.84%) and Cooperia (2.44%).