In most countries, poultry are reared by traditional farmers d ue tothe relative minimum capital needed to start off, availability of feed and the fast period of the birds to grow. This research was conducted on turkeys which aims to study the abundance and prevalence of ectoparasites from three localities around Kedah, Malaysia. Atotal of 20 turkeys (eight males and twelve females) were examined for ectoparasites infestation and endoparasites infection.Six species of ectoparasites: five lice and a mite have been discovered. The most prevalent ectoparasite was Menopon gallinae with occurrence of 45%. Other external parasites recorded includeLipeurus caponis and Megninia cubitalis with occurrence of 40%, Menacanthus pallidulus (35%), Goniocotes gallinae (30%) and Chelopistes meleagridis (20%). There was a significant difference between the ectoparasite abundance in Jabatan Perkhidmatan Veterinar and Alor Belat Barat [ANOVA, F(2,17)=6.33, p=0.009]. These lice commonly found in the fluff of the feathers, especially at the neck,abdomen, and wings. Lipeurus caponis was found to have the highest infestation in all male and female turkeys and Menacanthus pallidulus was noted as the less common ectoparasite infesting both the male andfemale turkeys. Endoparasite infection was recorded in two species of parasite eggs of nematodes and protozoa. Oocyst of Eimeria spp. recorded the highest faecal egg count with 7300 epg compared to Capillaria spp. with only 1200 epg. Scavenging and pecking behaviour of turkeys in barn area with unsuitable farm housing environmentwere the major contributing factors to the infestation of ectoparasites as well as endoparasites infection.

A study was conducted on 240 scavenging chickens randomly obtained from various districts from the state of Penang, Peninsular Malaysia. The chickens were closely examined for visible ectoparasites in the laboratory. The ectoparasites were collected using a blunt forceps and stored in universal bottles containing 70% ethanol. Ten species of ectoparasites were noted which consisted of five species of lice, two species of mites, two species of ticks and one species of chigger. The lice identifi ed were Menopon gallinae, Menacanthus pallidulus, Lipeurus caponis, Goniocotes gallinae and Goniodes dissimilis. These lice occurred in the fl uff of the feathers of the body especially the neck, back, abdomen and wings. The mites were Megninia sp. and Pterolichus sp. Examinations of the ears and combs revealed Haemaphysalis sp., the hard tick. Meanwhile, Ornithonyssus sp., the soft tick was found on feathers, whereas chigger, Leptotrombidium sp. was found attached to the skins. The study also revealed that M. gallinae was the most common ectoparasite with 76.7% occurrence, followed by Pterolichus sp. (69.6%), L. caponis (63.3%), M. pallidulus (41.7%), Leptotrombidium sp. (17.5%), G. gallinae (9.5%), Haemaphysalis sp. (6.7%), Megninia sp. (3.8%) and Ornithonyssus sp. (3.8%). The least common ectoparasite was G. dissimilis occurring in 2.1% of the chickens.

A study was conducted on 16 commercial free range chickens (8 malesand 8 females) sourced from Alor Setar, Kedah in order to determine the prevalence of ecto and endoparasites. Results showed that there were 12 different species of ectoand endoparasites from these chickens. Four (4) species of ectoparasites which consist of three lice and a tick have been discovered. The highest prevalence of ectoparasite was Menopon gallinae (93.8%). The other ectoparasites were Menacanthus pallidulus (81.3%), Haemaphysalis sp. (37.5%) and Lipeurus caponis (18.8%). On the other hand, eight species of endoparasites which consist of four nematodes and four cestodes were discovered. Rallietina echinobothrida showed the highest prevalence of endoparasite (100%) followed by Heterakis gallinarum (93.8%), Acuaria spiralis (87.5%), Ascaria galli (81.3%), Rallietina tetragona(43.8%), Gongylonema ingluvicola (37.5%), Hymenolepis carioca (12.5%)and Hymenolepis cantiana (12.5%). Endoparasites infestation was recorded highest on male chicken (52.6%) compared to female (47.4%). However, there was no statistically significant difference betweenthe number of endoparasites and both sexes; t (14) = 0.817, p>0.05.