scholarly journals Diversity and host assemblage of avian haemosporidians in different terrestrial ecoregions of Peru

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luz Garcia-Longoria ◽  
Jaime Muriel ◽  
Sergio Magallanes ◽  
Zaira Hellen Villa-Galarce ◽  
Leonila Ricopa ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Amazon Basin ◽  
Evolutionary Dynamics ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Host Community ◽  
Bird Diversity ◽  
New Host ◽  
Parasite Richness ◽  
Haemosporidian Parasites ◽  
Avian Haemosporidians ◽  
Host Parasite

Abstract Characterizing the diversity and structure of host-parasite communities is crucial to understanding their eco-evolutionary dynamics. Malaria and related haemosporidian parasites are responsible for fitness loss and mortality in bird species worldwide. However, despite exhibiting the greatest ornithological biodiversity, avian haemosporidians from Neotropical regions are quite unexplored. Here, we analyse the genetic diversity of bird haemosporidian parasites (Plasmodium and Haemoproteus) in 1,336 individuals belonging to 206 bird species to explore for differences in diversity of parasite lineages and bird species across five well-differentiated Peruvian ecoregions. We detected 70 different haemosporidian lineages infecting 74 bird species. We showed that 25 out of the 70 haplotypes had not been previously recorded. Moreover, we also identified 81 new host – parasite interactions representing new host records for these haemosporidian parasites. Our outcomes revealed that the effective diversity (as well as the richness, abundance, and Shannon-Weaver index) for both birds and parasite lineages was higher in Amazon basin ecoregions. Furthermore, we also showed that ecoregions with greater diversity of bird species also had high parasite richness, hence suggesting that host community is crucial in explaining parasite richness. Generalist parasites were found in ecoregions with lower bird diversity, implying that the abundance and richness of hosts may shape the exploitation strategy followed by haemosporidian parasites. These outcomes reveal that Neotropical region is a major reservoir of unidentified haemosporidian lineages. Further studies analysing host distribution and specificity of these parasites in the tropics will provide important knowledge about phylogenetic relationships, phylogeography, and patterns of evolution and distribution of haemosporidian parasites.

scholarly journals Prevalence and Genetic Diversity of Avian Haemosporidian Parasites in Southern Iran

Pathogens ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
pp. 645
Author(s):  
Vajiheh Ghaemitalab ◽  
Omid Mirshamsi ◽  
Gediminas Valkiūnas ◽  
Mansour Aliabadian
Keyword(s):  
Bird Species ◽  
Geographic Area ◽  
Haemosporidian Parasite ◽  
New Host ◽  
Haemosporidian Parasites ◽  
Mitochondrial Cytochrome B ◽  
Base Pair Fragment ◽  
Avian Haemosporidians ◽  
Resident Bird ◽  
Local Transmission

Avian haemosporidians are widespread and diverse and are classified in the genera Plasmodium, Haemoproteus, Leucocytozoon, and Fallisia. These species are known to cause haemosporidiosis and decreased fitness of their hosts. Despite the high diversity of habitats and animal species in Iran, only few studies have addressed avian haemosporidians in this geographic area. This study was performed in the south and southeast of Iran during the bird breeding seasons in 2017 and 2018, with the aim to partly fill in this gap. Blood samples of 237 passerine birds belonging to 41 species and 20 families were collected. Parasite infections were identified using a nested PCR protocol targeting a 479-base-pair fragment of the mitochondrial cytochrome b (cytb) gene of Haemoproteus, Plasmodium and Leucocytozoon species. The overall prevalence of haemosporidian parasites was 51.1%, and 55 different lineages were identified, of which 15 cytb lineages were new globally. The lineages of Haemoproteus predominated (63.6% of all detected lineages), followed by Leucocytozoon and Plasmodium. Nineteen new host records of haemosporidian cytb lineages were identified, and the majority of them were found in resident bird species, indicating local transmission. Thirteen co-infections (9.8% of infected individuals) of Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon parasites in seven host species were observed. This study shows the presence of active local transmission of parasites to resident bird species in the southeast of Iran and contributes to the knowledge on haemosporidian parasite biodiversity in this poorly studied region of the world.

scholarly journals Host-parasite interaction explains variation in prevalence of avian haemosporidians at the community level

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. Garcia-Longoria ◽  
A. Marzal ◽  
F. de Lope ◽  
L. Z. Garamszegi
Keyword(s):  
Host Species ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Ecological Factors ◽  
Bird Community ◽  
Parasite Prevalence ◽  
Host Community ◽  
Dual Nature ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Avian Haemosporidians ◽  
Host Parasite

ABSTRACTParasites are a selective force that shape host community structure and dynamics, but host communities can also influence parasitism. Understanding the dual nature from host-parasite interactions can be facilitated by quantifying the variation in parasite prevalence (i.e. the proportion of infected host individuals in a population) among host species and then comparing that variation to other ecological factors that are known to also shape host communities. Avian haemosporidian parasites (e.g. Plasmodium and Haemoproteus) are abundant and widespread representing an excellent model for the study of host-parasite interactions. Several geographic and environmental factors have been suggested to determine prevalence of avian haemosporidians in bird communities. However, much remains to be known regarding whether host and parasite traits, represented by phylogenetic distances among species and degree of specialization in host-parasite relationships, can influence parasite prevalence. The aims of this study were to analyze factors affecting prevalence in a bird community and to test whether the degree of parasite specialization on their hosts is determined by host traits. Our statistical analyses suggest that prevalence is mainly determined by the interaction between host species and parasite lineages where tolerance and/or susceptibility to parasites plays an essential role. Additionally, we found that although some of the parasite lineages infected a low number of bird species, the species they infected were distantly related and therefore the parasites themselves should not be considered typical host specialists. Prevalence was higher for generalist than for specialist parasites in some, but not all, host species. These results suggest that prevalence mainly results from the interaction between host immune defences and parasite exploitation strategies wherein the result of an association between particular parasite lineages and particular host species is idiosyncratic.

A survey of biting midges of the genus Culicoides Latreille, 1809 (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) in NE Bulgaria, with respect to transmission of avian haemosporidians

2013 ◽  
Vol 58 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Aneliya Bobeva ◽  
Pavel Zehtindjiev ◽  
Staffan Bensch ◽  
Jana Radrova
Keyword(s):  
Molecular Genetic ◽  
Biting Midges ◽  
Field Station ◽  
Culicoides Obsoletus ◽  
Haemosporidian Parasites ◽  
Total Prevalence ◽  
Parasite Specificity ◽  
Avian Haemosporidians ◽  
Host Parasite ◽  
Common Parasite

AbstractThis study presents data from a molecular survey of the species of the genus Culicoides from the region of Kalimok Field Station (NE Bulgaria) and haemosporidian parasites occurring in them in order to investigate the host-parasite specificity of haemosporidians to their dipteran vectors. The identification of Culicoides spp. was carried out by morphological and molecular-genetic methods. We collected and analysed 230 individuals of the genus Culicoides. Nine species were found. Eight species were identified morphologically; Culicoides obsoletus, C. riethi, C. newsteadi, C. circumscriptus, C. festivipennis, C. punctatus, C. pictipennis and C. puncticollis. The ninth species might be classified as either of C. nubeculosus or C. riethi and its identification needs additional investigations. The total prevalence of Haemoproteus in the examined biting midges was 2.17%. Three individuals of C. pictipennis were infected with the Haemoproteus lineage TURDUS2 (prevalence 16.67%), a common parasite of thrushes (Turdidae). Two individuals of C. circumscriptus contained Haemoproteus lineages (prevalence 2.78%); these were the lineage HAWF2 (previously reported from Coccothraustes coccothraustes) and a new lineage CULCIR1 not previously reported in the literature.

scholarly journals Haemosporidian taxonomic composition, network centrality and partner fidelity between resident and migratory avian hosts

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniela de Angeli Dutra ◽  
Alan Fecchio ◽  
Erika Martins Braga ◽  
Robert Poulin
Keyword(s):  
Local Community ◽  
Taxonomic Composition ◽  
Network Centrality ◽  
Migratory Species ◽  
Haemosporidian Parasites ◽  
Host Parasite Interactions ◽  
Community Transmission ◽  
Avian Haemosporidians ◽  
Host Parasite

Migration can modify interaction dynamics between parasites and their hosts with migrant hosts able to disperse parasites and impact local community transmission. Thus, studying the relationships among migratory hosts and their parasites is fundamental to elucidate how migration shapes host-parasite interactions. Avian haemosporidian parasites are some of the most prevalent, diverse, and important wildlife parasites, and are also widely used as models in ecological and evolutionary research. Here, we contrast parasite taxonomic composition, network centrality and partner fidelity among resident and non-resident hosts using avian haemosporidians as study model. In order to evaluate parasite taxonomic composition, we performed permutational multivariate analyses of variance to quantify dissimilarity in haemosporidian lineages infecting different host migratory categories. Additionally, we ran multilevel Bayesian models to assess the role of migration in determining centrality and partner fidelity in host-parasite networks of avian hosts and their respective haemosporidian parasites. We observed similar parasite taxonomic composition and partner fidelity among resident and migratory hosts. Conversely, we demonstrate that migratory hosts play a more central role in host-parasite networks than residents. However, when evaluating partially and fully migratory hosts separately, we observed that only partially migratory species presented higher network centrality when compared to resident birds. Therefore, migration does not lead to differences in both parasite taxonomic composition and partner fidelity. However, migratory behavior is positively associated with network centrality, indicating migratory hosts play more important roles in shaping host-parasite interactions and influence local transmission.

scholarly journals How Does Circadian Rhythm Shape Host-Parasite Associations? A Comparative Study on Infection Patterns in Diurnal and Nocturnal Raptors

Diversity ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (8) ◽  
pp. 338
Author(s):  
Kai Gao ◽  
Bing Zhou ◽  
Li-Xing Yang ◽  
Lu Dong ◽  
Xi Huang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Circadian Rhythm ◽  
Classical Model ◽  
Parasite Infection ◽  
Haemosporidian Parasites ◽  
Rescue Center ◽  
Avian Haemosporidians ◽  
Vertebrate Hosts ◽  
Underlying Mechanisms ◽  
Host Parasite ◽  
Insight Into

Infection patterns of parasites, including their prevalence, diversity and host specificity, can be impacted by many biological and environmental factors, but no study has focused on the circadian rhythms of vertebrate hosts, which may affect susceptibilities and encounter rates between hosts and vectors and further shape host-parasite associations. In this study, we focused on avian haemosporidians, a classical model in studies of host-parasite associations, and investigated the infection patterns in rescued raptors brought to the Beijing Raptor Rescue Center during 2007–2020. We first assessed the association between prevalence and host biotic traits; haemosporidian prevalence was higher in the nocturnal raptors than in the diurnal raptors, and the prevalence of Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon in the nocturnal raptors was significantly higher than that in the diurnal raptors. Furthermore, we analysed the phylogenetic relationship and host-parasite network-level differences of haemosporidian parasites in diurnal and nocturnal raptors, and demonstrated that the lineages infecting the diurnal and nocturnal raptors were not clearly separated, but the nocturnal lifestyle led to a more specialized host-parasite network structure. These variations in host-parasite associations may be driven by different susceptibilities of the hosts and the diversity or abundance of vectors during the day and night. Our study provides new insight into host-parasite associations shaped by circadian rhythm and calls for more studies on the underlying mechanisms of parasite infection.

scholarly journals The drivers of avian haemosporidian prevalence in tropical lowland forest of New Guinea in three dimensions

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Celia Vinagre-Izquierdo ◽  
Kasun Bodawatta ◽  
Krystof Chmel ◽  
Justinn Renelies-Hamilton ◽  
Luda Paul ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Forest Cover ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
New Guinea ◽  
Parasite Prevalence ◽  
Host Community ◽  
Community Level ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Effect Of Temperature ◽  
Tropical Lowland ◽  
Host Parasite

Haemosporidians are among the most common parasites in birds and often impact negatively host fitness and consequently can affect entire host populations. It is therefore important to determine what factors influence parasite prevalence, particularly if they are caused by anthropogenic activities. Here we explore the effect of temperature, forest cover, and proximity to anthropogenic disturbance on haemosporidian prevalence and host-parasite networks on a horizontal spatial scale, comparing four fragmented forest patches and five localities within a continuous forest in Papua New Guinea. We find that the majority of Haemosporidian infections are caused by the genus Haemoproteus and that avian-haemosporidian networks are more specialized in continuous forests. At the community level, only forest cover was negatively associated with Haemoproteus infections, while abiotic and anthropogenic effects on parasite prevalence differed between bird species. We further tested if prevalence and host-parasite networks differed between the canopy and the understorey (vertical stratification) and found significantly higher Haemoproteus prevalence levels in the canopy, and the opposite trend for Plasmodium prevalence. This implies that birds experience distinct parasite pressures depending on the stratum they inhabit, likely driven by differences in vector communities. These three-dimensional analyses of avian-haemosporidians at horizontal and vertical scales provides a deeper understanding of the environmental factors driving haemosporidian prevalence in tropical lowland forests of New Guinea. Collectively, our results suggest that the effect of abiotic variables on haemosporidian infections are species specific, and that factors influencing community-level infections are primarily driven by host community composition.

scholarly journals Assessment of Associations between Malaria Parasites and Avian Hosts—A Combination of Classic System and Modern Molecular Approach

Biology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (7) ◽  
pp. 636
Author(s):  
Xi Huang
Keyword(s):  
Classical System ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Infection Intensity ◽  
Host Population ◽  
Real Time Quantitative Pcr ◽  
Haemosporidian Parasites ◽  
Droplet Pcr ◽  
Host Parasite ◽  
Globally Distributed ◽  
Accurate Quantification

Avian malaria and related haemosporidian parasites are responsible for fitness loss and mortality in susceptible bird species. This group of globally distributed parasites has long been used as a classical system for investigating host–parasite associations. The association between a parasite and its hosts can be assessed by the prevalence in the host population and infection intensity in a host individual, which, respectively, reflect the ability of the parasite to infect the host and reproduce within the host. However, the latter has long been poorly investigated due to numerous challenges, such as lack of general molecular markers and limited sensitivity of traditional methods, especially when analysing naturally infected birds. The recent development of genetic databases, together with novel molecular methodologies, has shed light on this long-standing problem. Real-time quantitative PCR has enabled more accurate quantification of avian haemosporidian parasites, and digital droplet PCR further improved experimental sensitivity and repeatability of quantification. In recent decades, parallel studies have been carried out all over the world, providing great opportunities for exploring the adaptation of haemosporidian parasites to different hosts and the variations across time and space, and further investigating the coevolutionary history between parasites and their hosts. I hereby review the most important milestones in diagnosis techniques of avian haemosporidian parasites and illustrate how they provide new insights for understanding host–parasite associations.

scholarly journals Novel RNA viruses associated with avian haemosporidian parasites

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jose Roberto Rodrigues ◽  
Scott W Roy ◽  
Ravinder N Sehgal
Keyword(s):  
Rna Viruses ◽  
Rna Virus ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Amino Acid Identity ◽  
Rna Dependent Rna Polymerase ◽  
Haemosporidian Parasites ◽  
Local Sequence ◽  
Avian Haemosporidians ◽  
Vertebrate Hosts ◽  
Human Plasmodium

Avian haemosporidian parasites can cause malaria-like symptoms in their hosts and have been implicated in the demise of some bird species. The newly described Matryoshka RNA viruses (MaRNAV1 and MaRNAV2) infect parasites that in turn infect their vertebrate hosts. MaRNAV2 was the first RNA virus discovered associated with parasites of the genus Leucocytozoon. By analyzing metatranscriptomes from the NCBI SRA database with local sequence alignment tools, we detected two novel RNA viruses; we describe them as MaRNAV3 associated with Leucocytozoon and MaRNAV4 associated with Parahaemoproteus. These had ~40-60% amino acid identity to the RNA-dependent RNA-polymerase (RdRp) of MaRNAV1 and 2, respectively. These findings lead us to hypothesize that MaRNAV_like viruses are widespread and tightly associated with the order Haemosporida since they have been described in human Plasmodium vivax, and now two genera of avian haemosporidians.

scholarly journals Agricultural land in the Amazon basin supports low bird diversity and is a poor replacement for primary forest

The Condor ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 122 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Montague H C Neate-Clegg ◽  
Çağan H Şekercioğlu
Keyword(s):  
Amazon Basin ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
Bird Communities ◽  
Bird Diversity ◽  
Primary Forest ◽  
Forest Fragments ◽  
The Matrix ◽  
History Of ◽  
Matrix Habitats

Abstract The Amazon has a long history of disturbance under subsistence agriculture, but slash-and-burn agriculture is small in scale and has relatively low impact on resident avifauna. More recently, the Amazon has suffered extensive deforestation in favor of cattle ranching and other modern systems of agriculture. Cattle pastures, mechanized agriculture, and even tree plantations have detrimental effects on bird communities, greatly lowering diversity, especially that of primary forest interior specialists. A rising threat to the Amazon is the spread of oil palm plantations that retain few bird species and are not viable alternatives to forest. Embedded within the expanding agropastoral mosaic are forest fragments that have experienced a well-documented loss of diversity. Yet, the matrix can mitigate the recovery of fragmented bird communities depending on the type of secondary regrowth. Connectivity via matrix habitats or forest corridors is critical for the maintenance of forest avifauna. With so many types of land use developing across the Amazon, the “tropical countryside” has potential value for bird diversity. However, evidence suggests that the agropastoral mosaic harbors a small, more homogenized avifauna with few forest species, especially when primary forest is absent from the landscape. For the Amazon Basin’s bird life to be conserved into the future, preservation of large tracts of well-connected primary forest is vital. Tropical countryside dominated by agriculture simply cannot sustain sufficient levels of biodiversity.

Survey on Bird Species and Analysis on Bird Diversity in the Central Kunlun Mountains in the Early Winter

2010 ◽  
Vol 27 (2) ◽  
pp. 230-235
Author(s):  
Ming MA ◽  
Bao-wen HU ◽  
Yu MEI ◽  
Thomas McCarthy
Keyword(s):  
Bird Species ◽  
Bird Diversity ◽  
Early Winter ◽  
Kunlun Mountains
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