Anisakid nematodes are important foodborne hazards in marine fish, but molecular data from imported seafood examined within the Serbian official control system remain scarce. This study characterized anisakid and related ascaridoid molecular profiles in parasite material recovered during official examination of imported marine fish and fishery products. Seventy-four selected molecular test records were analysed by multiplex PCR targeting the internal transcribed spacer region of ribosomal DNA. Specific amplification was obtained in 55 records (74.3%). The predominant result was an Anisakis simplex sensu lato/A. pegreffii hybrid-like multiplex-PCR banding profile (39 records), followed by A. pegreffii (8), Contracaecum osculatum (6), and Anisakis typica (2); Anisakis taxa accounted for 89.1% of positive records. Hake (Merluccius spp.) predominated among records with known fish identity, although record-level positivity was similar in hake and mackerel (Scomber spp.). Spain accounted for most records with a known origin, while positivity and profile distributions were descriptively comparable with other known origins. Multiplex-PCR banding profiles provide a useful complement to routine parasitological examination and baseline descriptive information for surveillance of anisakid-related hazards in imported seafood in Serbia; however, the assay alone cannot confirm hybrid genotypes or parasite viability. The findings describe selected laboratory molecular-test records and do not constitute estimates of anisakid prevalence in imported fish.

Wild carnivores can maintain ectoparasites and vector-borne pathogens at wildlife–domestic animal–human interfaces. We characterized ectoparasites and selected vector-associated agents in golden jackals (Canis aureus), red foxes (Vulpes vulpes), Eurasian badgers (Meles meles) and European wildcats (Felis silvestris) sampled in three regions of Serbia from October 2022 to January 2023. Of 122 animals examined, 77 carried ectoparasites; 68 ticks and 254 fleas were collected. Ticks comprised Ixodes ricinus (n = 37, from which n = 23 on C. aureus, n = 14 on V. vulpes), Dermacentor reticulatus (n = 23, from which n = 12 on C. aureus, n = 11 on V. vulpes), Rhipicephalus spp. (n = 3, from which n = 2 on C. aureus, n = 1 on V.vulpes), and Haemaphysalis punctata (n= 5, from which n = 2 on C. aureus, n = 3 on V.vulpes), whereas fleas comprised Ctenocephalides canis (n = 171, from which n = 97 on C. aureus, n = 64 on V. vulpes, n = 9 on Meles meles, n = 1 on Felis silvestris), C. felis (n = 36, from which n = 14 on C. aureus, n = 12 on V. vulpes, n = 10 on Meles meles), Pulex irritans (n = 25, from which n = 15 on C. aureus, n = 6 on V. vulpes, n = 4 on Meles meles), Ceratophyllus gallinae (n = 21, from which n = 5 on C. aureus, n = 16 on V. vulpes) and Xenopsylla cheopis (n = 1 on C. aureus). Molecular screening detected Hepatozoon canis DNA in six tick samples, Babesia spp. DNA in three tick preparations and Bartonella spp. DNA in 13 flea samples; the remaining bacterial, protozoal and viral targets were not detected. Sanger sequencing yielded sequences assigned to Babesia canis (n = 2), H. canis (n = 4) and Bartonella rochalimae (n = 13). Phylogenetic analyses placed the study sequences with related Eurasian reference lineages. These findings document a diverse ectoparasite fauna and vector-associated pathogen circulation in Serbian wild carnivores and support continued One Health surveillance using paired host-vector sampling.