Trypanosoma Species Causing Bovine Trypanosomosis in South Achefer District, Northern Ethiopia

A cross sectional study was carried out to investigate the prevalence of trypanosome infection and the species of trypanosome affecting cattle in four villages of South Achefer district in Amhara regional state. Blood examination conducted on 384 randomly selected cattle showed an overall prevalence of 4.2% without significant difference (P > 0.05) between the villages. The species of trypanosomes encountered in the current study were Trypanosoma vivax and Trypanosoma congolense which accounted for 62.5% and 31.25% of the overall infection, respectively. Simultaneous infection with both species was detected in 6.25% of the parasitaemic animals. The prevalence of trypanosome infection did not show significant variation between cattle of different age groups and sexes (P > 0.05 in each case). There was a significant (P < 0.05) association between trypanosome infection and body condition score (BCS) of the study animals. The mean packed cell volume (PCV) of trypanosome infected animals was significantly (P < 0.05) lower than that of uninfected animals. Although the current study indicated low prevalence of trypanosome infection compared with previous studies, the significant impacts of trypanosomosis on cattle production and productivity should not be neglected. Entomological surveys are recommended in the future to generate a complete data on the epidemiology of the disease in the study area.