Hi, welcome to this blog on the topic: The meaning and the life cycle of liverfluke.
Table Of Contents
- Meaning of liverfluke
- Life cycle of liverfluke
- How to prevent liverfluke from completing its life cycle in the field.
- Economic importance of liverfluke
- Control of liverfluke
- Revision Questions
Meaning of Liverfluke
The liverfluke is a flattened, leaf-like organism. It is brown in color, about 2 cm long. It is an endoparasite of farm animals like cattle, sheep and goat. Farm animals are the primary host while the snail (Limnaea truncatula) is the secondary host.
Life Cycle of Liverfluke
Fertilized egg are passed out together with faeces. During favorable condition, the eggs hatch into small celiated larvae called miracidia. Each miracidium swims in water and is usually attracted to water snail, which is it’s secondary host. It enters the body of the snail during which it loses its cilia and changes to a sporocyst and reproduces asexually to give rise to new larvae called rediae. The rediae comes out of the sporocyst and goes to the digestive gland where its develops into a minute worm called cercariae. The cercariae leaves the body of the snail and swims about in water until it finds a suitable host when the animal drinks contaminated water. At times, the larvae leave the Host snail and encyst on vegetation. From there, it is ingested by grazing animals. The cercaria penetrate the skin and tissue to enter the blood stream; then to the liver tissue and finally get to the bile duct where they finally settle down and develop into adult liverfluke.
How to prevent liverfluke from completing its live cycle in the field
The life cycle of liverfluke can be disrupted by:
- Eliminating all the snails which are their secondary hosts in the waters/pastures where the ruminant animals drink/feed by spraying copper sulphate solution on the them.
- Provides clear, uninfected water and feed for the animals.
- Control weeds Along River side.
- Periodic burning of pasture to kill eggs in faeces.
Economic Importance of Liverfluke
- Liverfluke causes a disease called bilharzia or schistosomiasis.
- It leads to loss of blood (physical losses as parasite is sucking blood).
- It causes anaemia, i.e, inability to produce blood.
- It obstruct the bile duct
- It leads to digestive disturbance.
- It may result in death.
- It causes liver rot
Control of Liverfluke
- Drain pasture properly since wet pasture can be harbour snails
- introduce ducks and gees to eat up the snails.
- Use lime on pasture because eggs of liverfluke do not hatch in water containing high level of alkaline.
Revision Questions
- What is Liverfluke?
- State the life cycle of liverfluke
- List four ways on how to prevent liverfluke from completing its life cycle
- List five economic importance of Liverfluke
- List 3 methods to control Liverfluke.
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