Natural infection by intestinal cestodes: variability and effect on growth in Greater Snow Goose goslings (Chen caerulescens atlantica)

2002 ◽  
Vol 80 (6) ◽  
pp. 1077-1083 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohamed Righi ◽  
Gilles Gauthier

We determined the species of intestinal helminths in Greater Snow Goose (Chen caerulescens atlantica) goslings and examined annual variability in infection levels over a 5-year period on Bylot Island, Nunavut. The intestines of 112 wild goslings collected when near fledging were examined. We also evaluated the effect of intestinal parasites on growth and behaviour of captive goslings in a controlled experiment. In 2000, one group (n = 11) was treated with anthelmintic drugs (Piperazine 52 for nematodes and Droncit® for cestodes) and the other (n = 14) was used as a control. Four hymenolepidid cestodes were identified: Drepanidotaenia lanceolata, Hymenolepis barrowensis, Microsom acanthus setigera, and Retinometra longivaginata. No nematodes were detected. Prevalence of intestinal cestodes in wild goslings was 100% but their abundance varied among years (from 28.9 ± 2.7 to 175.2 ± 49.7 (mean ± SE) cestodes per host) and individuals. Captive goslings treated with anthelmintic drugs were free of parasites, whereas all control goslings were parasitized when sacrificed at 36 d, although cestode abundance in the latter group was much lower (4.2 ± 0.7) than in wild goslings. There was no difference in growth rates between treated and control captive goslings until they were 36 d of age. However, treated goslings spent more time feeding than control ones, which suggests an effect of cestodes on host behaviour.

The Condor ◽  
2000 ◽  
Vol 102 (1) ◽  
pp. 163-171 ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Fortin ◽  
Gilles Gauthier ◽  
Jacques Larochelle

Abstract We examined the control of body temperature during active and resting behaviors in chicks of a large precocial bird, the Greater Snow Goose (Chen caerulescens atlantica), growing in a cold Arctic environment. Imprinted goslings from 4 to 31 days old maintained their mean (± SD) body core temperature within a narrow range around 40.6 ± 0.2°C (range: 38.7–42.2°C), independently of changes in their thermal environment. Average body temperature increased <0.4°C between 4 and 31 days of age. Hypothermia, potentially an energy-saving mechanism, was not used by active goslings. The potential for heat loss to the environment influenced the length of resting bouts in wild goslings. As environmental temperature increased, wild goslings remained sitting alone for longer periods, whereas when it decreased, brooding behavior was prolonged. The time spent huddling increased with the number of goslings involved. Body temperature during huddling bouts measured in imprinted chicks was significantly lower than during periods of activity, showing a rapid decrease averaging 0.8°C at the onset of huddling, followed by a slow recovery before activity was resumed. Thus, huddling behavior was not used as a rewarming mechanism. Greater Snow Goose goslings appear to prioritize metabolic activity by maintaining a high body temperature, despite the high energy costs that may be involved. Social thermoregulation is used to reduce the energy costs entailed by the strict maintenance of homeothermy.


2006 ◽  
Vol 84 (8) ◽  
pp. 1096-1103 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Mainguy ◽  
G. Gauthier ◽  
J.-F. Giroux ◽  
I. Duclos

Many precocial birds make long-distance movements with their young after hatch to reach the best foraging sites. On Bylot Island, Nunavut, a large number of Greater Snow Goose ( Chen caerulescens atlantica L., 1758) families move 30 km from the main nesting colony (MNC) to reach the main brood-rearing area (MBR) soon after hatch. Geese moving from the MNC to the MBR generally rear lighter and smaller goslings than geese that avoid this movement by both nesting and rearing their brood at the MBR. In this study, we tested the hypotheses that use of low-quality habitats and an increase in the time spent walking at the expense of foraging during movements could explain the reduced growth of goslings in those families. We conducted visual observations to compare habitat use and selection as well as behaviour of geese during brood movements from the MNC to the MBR (i.e., at a transit area) with those of families that had already settled at the MBR. We also conducted aerial tracking to monitor habitat use of 16 radio-marked females during and after brood movements. Streams, wet polygons, and lakes, considered high-quality habitats in terms of feeding opportunities and predator refuges, were preferred, while upland, a low-quality habitat, was avoided at both the transit area and the MBR. However, broods were found in the upland habitat more often during movements than once settled on a rearing site. The behaviour of unmarked geese at the transit site did not differ from that of geese at the MBR. We suggest that reduced food intake in low-quality habitats during movements, but not the increase in time spent walking, may explain the reduction in growth observed at fledging in goslings moving from the MNC to the MBR.


The Auk ◽  
1932 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
pp. 213-214
Author(s):  
Ivan R. Tomkins

The Auk ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 122 (2) ◽  
pp. 479-496 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stéphane Menu ◽  
Gilles Gauthier ◽  
Austin Reed

Abstract The many hazards that await birds along their migratory routes may negatively affect their survival, especially among newly fledged young. We estimated survival of young Greater Snow Geese (Chen caerulescens atlantica) during fall migration from the High Arctic to temperate areas and examined factors affecting their survival over a five-year period, using two approaches. First, each year (1993–1997), we banded fledglings and adults in mid-August, just before their departure from Bylot Island in the High Arctic (Nunavut, Canada), and again at an important staging area 3,000 km to the south at the Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Area (Québec, Canada) in October; recovery data from those two banding periods allowed estimation of survival during fall migration. Second, we visually determined brood size of neck-banded females before and after the main portion of the migratory flight, to estimate survival of young. The two approaches yielded similar survival estimates and showed the same interannual variation, thus suggesting that estimates were reliable. Mortality of young shortly after fledging and during the fall migration was high, compared with that of adults (monthly survival 0.662 in young vs. 0.989 in adults). However, mortality of young after migration was similar to that of adults (monthly survival 0.969 in young vs. 0.972 in adults). Migration survival of young varied considerably among annual cohorts (range of 0.119–0.707 over five years), and most of the mortality appeared to be natural. Survival was especially low in years when (1) temperatures at time of fledging and start of migration were low (i.e. near or below freezing), (2) mean body mass of goslings near fledging was low, or (3) mean fledging date was late. Our results suggest that migration survival of young is affected by a combination of several factors (climatic conditions, body mass, and fledging date) and that survival is reduced when one of those factors intervenes.


Molecules ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 25 (12) ◽  
pp. 2770 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Dziduch ◽  
Przemysław Kołodziej ◽  
Agata Paneth ◽  
Anna Bogucka-Kocka ◽  
Monika Wujec

Parasitic infections caused by different species of intestinal helminths still poses a threat to public health. There is a need to search for new, effective anthelmintic drugs. A series of novel thiosemicarbazides were synthesized and evaluated for their in vitro anthelmintic activity. The preliminary results showed that the most of synthesized compounds were very active. 4-Phenyl-1-[(1-methyl-4-nitroimidazol-2-yl)carbonyl]thiosemicarbazide and 4-(3-chlorophenyl)-1-[(1-methyl-4-nitroimidazol-2-yl)carbonyl]thiosemicarbazide showed a 100% mortality of nematodes and a high anthelmintic activity in both tested concentrations.


2013 ◽  
Vol 22 (2) ◽  
pp. 302-306 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luciane Holsback ◽  
Mauro José Lahm Cardoso ◽  
Rafael Fagnani ◽  
Thaís Helena Constantino Patelli

The objective of this study was to investigate the frequency of occurrence and variety of intestinal parasites among free-living wild animals. Fecal samples from wild mammals and birds at rehabilitation centers in the states of Mato Grosso do Sul and São Paulo were analyzed by sedimentation and flotation-centrifugation methods. Parasite eggs, oocysts, cysts and/or trophozoites were found in 71% of the samples. Cryptosporidiumsp. oocysts were detected in fecal samples from oncillas (Leopardus tigrinus) and scaly-headed parrots (Pionus maximiliani). Giardia cysts were identified in the feces of a gray brocket (Mazama gouazoubira). Among the most common parasites found, there were eggs from Toxocara cati,Toxascaris leonina and Ancylostoma tubaeforme, and from Cestoda. Several Enterobiussp. eggs were found in the feces of red howler monkeys (Alouatta seniculus). It can be concluded from this study that despite the small number of samples, the diversity of parasites found was noteworthy. Additional information about parasite endofauna in wild animals is needed, since their presence might suggest that there could be proximity to and interactions with domestic animals and/or humans. In addition, further studies on parasites from free-living wild animals are of prime importance for understanding the intensity of anthropic changes in wild environments.


The Auk ◽  
1940 ◽  
Vol 57 (4) ◽  
pp. 562-562

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