Presenter(s)
Athena Lueken, Isabella Xiong, and William Harvey
Abstract
Trematoda is a class of flatworms and it encompasses approximately 20,000 species. Trematoda has two subclasses, Digenea and Aspedogastria. The families observed in this study were Echinostomatidae and Strigeidae from the subclass Digenea. Trematoda can be found in most species of animals, usually ingested from their food source. The Trematodes in this study were collected from three different duck species including Aythya affinis (Lesser Scaup,) Anas acuta (Pintail,) and Aix sponsa (Wood Duck) donated by hunters between 2023 and 2024. All ducks were harvested in the state of Wisconsin and the dissections were performed at Winona State University, Winona Minnesota. Identifying the most common species of Trematodes found in local duck species is an important step in understanding the spread of parasites and the effects they may have on infected waterfowl. The trematodes were identified using the Key to Trematodes Reported in Waterfowl published by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (1981). Identifications were made by observing the species' morphological characteristics microscopically and then using the key to determine species. The morphology was then compared with the DNA that was extracted and amplified using PCR before being sequenced at Idaho State University Molecular Research Core Facility. Sequences were analyzed using the Blast Search function on the NCBI website.
College
College of Science & Engineering
Department
Biology
Campus
Winona
First Advisor/Mentor
Kimberly M. Bates
Start Date
4-24-2025 9:00 AM
End Date
4-24-2025 10:00 AM
Presentation Type
Poster Session
Format of Presentation or Performance
In-Person
Session
1a=9am-10am
Poster Number
43
Included in
Classification of Trematode Species of Wisconsin Ducks Using Morphological and Molecular Methods
Trematoda is a class of flatworms and it encompasses approximately 20,000 species. Trematoda has two subclasses, Digenea and Aspedogastria. The families observed in this study were Echinostomatidae and Strigeidae from the subclass Digenea. Trematoda can be found in most species of animals, usually ingested from their food source. The Trematodes in this study were collected from three different duck species including Aythya affinis (Lesser Scaup,) Anas acuta (Pintail,) and Aix sponsa (Wood Duck) donated by hunters between 2023 and 2024. All ducks were harvested in the state of Wisconsin and the dissections were performed at Winona State University, Winona Minnesota. Identifying the most common species of Trematodes found in local duck species is an important step in understanding the spread of parasites and the effects they may have on infected waterfowl. The trematodes were identified using the Key to Trematodes Reported in Waterfowl published by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (1981). Identifications were made by observing the species' morphological characteristics microscopically and then using the key to determine species. The morphology was then compared with the DNA that was extracted and amplified using PCR before being sequenced at Idaho State University Molecular Research Core Facility. Sequences were analyzed using the Blast Search function on the NCBI website.
