Cooperia pectinata and C. punctata, parasites of the abomasum of cattle in northern Cameroon (Central Africa)

Cooperia pectinata Ransom, 1907 and C. punctata von Linstow, 1907 are common trichostrongyles of zebu cattle in Africa. Their intestinal localization within the digestive tract is considered by many authors to be exclusive. Nevertheless, some limited surveys in Malagasy, Mauritania, The Gambia and Cameroon reported the presence of both Cooperia species in the abomasum. The present survey was carried out in a slaughterhouse of northern Cameroon on 17 zebu cattle and confirms the infection of the small intestine and the abomasum by the two species within the total number of cattle examined. Abomasal infections especially with Cooperia punctata were heavier than those in the intestine. Due to the movements of herdbreeders in Central Africa, and to the preliminary results obtained in Mauritania, The Gambia, Burkina Faso and Malagasy, abomasal localization of C. pectinata and C. punctata may be encountered in very large areas of Africa, and that cooperiosis may contribute together with Haemonchus species to the digestive disorders involving the abomasum.