Tapeworms in an Apex Predator: First Molecular Identification of Taenia krabbei and Taenia hydatigena in Wolves (Canis lupus) from Romania
Maria Monica Florina Moraru, Ana-Maria Marin, Dan-Cornel Popovici, Azzurra Santoro, Adriano Casulli, Sorin Morariu, Marius Stelian Ilie, Violeta Igna, Narcisa Mederle

TL;DR
This study reports the first molecular detection of two tapeworm species in wolves from Romania, highlighting their role in parasite transmission.
Contribution
First molecular confirmation of Taenia krabbei and Taenia hydatigena in Romanian wolves.
Findings
Taeniid cestodes were detected in 33.33% of examined wolves.
Molecular analysis confirmed the presence of Taenia krabbei and Taenia hydatigena.
This is the first report of these species in wolves from Romania and likely Eastern Europe.
Abstract
The wolf (Canis lupus) is an apex predator with high mobility and trophic plasticity, serving as a valuable indicator of helminth transmission at the wildlife–livestock interface. Given the ecological overlap between wolves and both wild and domestic ungulates in Romania, we aimed to identify and molecularly characterize cestodes from wolves’ small intestines. Between November 2022 and June 2025, small intestines from nine wolves were collected across four Romanian counties, frozen, and examined using classical parasitology (macroscopic and microscopic) and molecular methods (PCR amplification and Sanger sequencing of mitochondrial cox1, nad1, and 12S rRNA fragments). Taeniids were detected in three (33.33%) out of nine tested individuals. Genetic analyses confirmed the presence of Taenia krabbei and Taenia hydatigena—species not previously reported in wolves from Romania. This study…
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Taxonomy
TopicsParasitic infections in humans and animals · Parasitic Infections and Diagnostics · Parasite Biology and Host Interactions
