Biodiversity Journal, 2013, 4 (1): 229-234 Gastrointestinal helminths in the local chicken Gallus gallus domesticus (Linnaeus, 1758) in traditional breeding of North- Western Algeria Fouzia Yousfi, Kheira Senouci * , Ilyes Medjoual, Hanene Djellil & Touria Hadj Slimane Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, University of Oran, Algeria * Corresponding author, email: kheirasenouci@yahoo.fr ABSTRACT This study was aimed to identify the gastrointestinal helminths of local chicken, Gallus gallus domesticus (Linnaeus, 1758), in traditional breeding of North-Western Algeria and to deter- mine their prevalence and average abundance. For this purpose, 114 local chickens were ex- amined between November 2010 and May 2012. The results show an overall prevalence of 100%, with a mean intensity of infection of 124 parasites per chicken. The birds were infected whatever the sex, weight and season. The parasitic fauna was composed of four taxonomic groups with prevalence significantly different (P<0.05): cestodes (95.61%), nematodes (93.86%), trematodes (18.42%) and acanthocephalan (1.75%). The most prevalent cestode species encountered were: Raillietina echinobothrida (85.09%), R. cesticillus (30.70%) and Hymenolepis carioca (28.95%). The predominant nematode species were Heterakis gallina- rum (78.07%), Subulura brumpti (62.28%), Ascaridia galli (39.47%) and Capillaria cau- dinflata (35.96%). The trematode species recorded were Postharmostomum gallinum (18.42%) and Brachylaema sp. (2.63%). Finally, only one acanthocephalan, Prosthorhynchus sp. (1.75%), was found. Among these helminths, the highest average abundance occurred with Heterakis gallinarum (39.04) and Subulura brumpti (35.88). This study revealed the im- portance of helminthic parasitism in traditional breeding of NW Algeria, and the need to use preventive and therapeutic measures for a better profitability of poultry algerian production. KEY WORDS Chicken; digestive tract; helminths; North-Western Algeria; traditional breeding. Received 03.01.2013; accepted 09.03.2013; printed 30.03.2013 INTRODUCTION In Africa, 80% of chicken populations are raised under the extensive system (Guèye, 1998; 2001). This is based on a traditional undemanding mode of exploitation and it is considered as an important source of protein and income for rural communities. However, in this type of production system the chickens are with higher risk of infection by a wide variety of parasites. Helminth parasites are a major cause of the decline in poultry productivity (delay of growth, reduced egg production, death of young birds). The recording of gastrointestinal helminthes was reported in several studies conducted on back- yard poultry from different regions of Africa (Sse- nyonga, 1982; Fatihu et al., 1991; Poulsen et al., 2000; Hassouni & Belghyti, 2006; Phiri et al., 2007; Mungube et al., 2008). In Algeria, there is insufficient information on parasitism in chickens although their exploitation under various systems of breeding prevails on that of the other poultries. According to OFIAAL