Prevalence of bovine coccidia in Kombolcha district of South Wollo, Ethiopia

A cross sectional study was conducted from November 2011 up to April 2012 in Kombolcha town to determine the prevalence of coccidia infection in calves. Fecal samples were collected from a total of 288 calves with the age of 1 month to 1 year old which were included in the study purposively. After collection, the samples were transported to the laboratory and examined for the presence of Eimeria oocyst by flotation techniques. For positive sample, a solution of 2.5% potassium dichromate (K2Cr2O7) was added to the feces containing the oocyst for sporulation and identification of the species. Out of 288 calves, 92 (31.9%) were found to be positive forEimeria species. There was statistically significant difference (P 0.05) between coccidia infection and sex, breed, body condition, address or management system. Five species of Eimeria were identified in the study and the most prevalent species wereEimeria bovis (42.3%), Eimeria zuernii (28.3%) and Eimeria auburnensis (13.0%). The other species were E. ellipsoidalis (8.7%), E. alabamensis (4.3%) and unidentified oocyst (3.3%). In conclusion, the present finding has demonstrated that bovine coccidia are one of the important pathogens in calves in the study area. Further epidemiological investigations are required to determine the Eimeria species composition and different agro ecological risk factor on the occurrence of the disease.   Key words: Calves, coccidiosis, Eimeria, Kombolcha, prevalence, risk factors.