Population Status and Habitat Requirement of Endangered Migratory Waterfowl of Patisar Lake, Bahawalpur, Pakistan

Patisar lake is an important wetland for migratory birds in mid-winter which is located in the center of the Lal Suhanra National Park of Bahawalpur, Pakistan. In this study Patisar lake has been explored to find out the endangered bird species. We used a map, a pencil, a notebook, a watch that is used to show seconds and binoculars for the census. Point counting system is used for the monitoring of birds and their habitat requirement was also measured. Result of the study indicated that these population belonging to 6 different orders, 10 different families, 18 genera and 32 different species of waterfowl were observed (1) Podicipediformes iPodicipedidae; iTachybaptus iruficollis), (2) Pelecaniformes (Family: Phalacrocoridae; Phalacrocorax iniger; P. carbo; Family; Anhingidae, Anhinga melanogaster), (3) Ciconiiformes (Family: Ardeidae, Ardea cinerea, A. purpurea, Ardeola grayii, Bubulcus ibis, Egretta alba, E. garzetta, E. intermedia), (4) Anseriformes (Family: Anatidae; Anas acuta, A. crecca, A. platyrhynchos, A. strepera, A. penelope, A. clypeata, Aythya ferina, A. fuligula, A. nyroca), (5) Gruiformes (Family: Rallidae: Fulica atra, Porphyrio porphyrio, Gallinula chloropus) and (6) Charadriiformes (Family: Recurvirostridae, Himantopusi himantopus; Family: Charadridae, Vanellusi indicus, V. vanellus, V. leucurus, Charadrius dubius; Family: Scolopacidae, Tringa tetanus, T. nebularia, Actitis hypoleucus; Family: Laridae,Sterna aurantia). According to They all preferred fresh water layer of the lake and marshes near the lake as their habitat. It was concluded that Patisar lake is a prodigious natural resource for the migratory waterfowl and the number of waterfowl declining with the passage of time.

Surveillance of avian influenza viruses from 2009 to 2013 in South Korea

Avian influenza viruses (AIVs) are carried by wild migratory waterfowl across migratory flyways. To determine the strains of circulating AIVs that may pose a risk to poultry and humans, regular surveillance studies must be performed. Here, we report the surveillance of circulating AIVs in South Korea during the winter seasons of 2009–2013. A total of 126 AIVs were isolated from 7942 fecal samples from wild migratory birds, with a total isolation rate of 1.59%. H1‒H7 and H9‒H11 hemagglutinin (HA) subtypes, and N1‒N3, N5, and N7‒N9 neuraminidase (NA) subtypes were successfully isolated, with H6 and N2 as the most predominant HA and NA subtypes, respectively. Sequence identity search showed that the HA and NA genes of the isolates were highly similar to those of low-pathogenicity influenza strains from the East Asian-Australasian flyway. No match was found for the HA genes of high-pathogenicity influenza strains. Thus, the AIV strains circulating in wild migratory birds from 2009 to 2013 in South Korea likely had low pathogenicity. Continuous surveillance studies such as this one must be performed to identify potential precursors of influenza viruses that may threaten animal and human health.

New Challenges Towards the Ecological Management of Paliastomi Lake Will Significantly Improve the Local Environment With Far-Going Global Consequences

The publication is addressing the problems of pollution from agricultural sources; municipal wastewater and industry in line with the bacterial pollution caused by migratory waterfowl of Paliastomi Lake that is an internationally recognized habitat, wintery and transit area of the birds and an important tourism site. It reviews: the current state of the environment of Paliastomi Lake at the moment of the chemical and microbiological research and mathematical simulation modeling of possible dissemination of polluting chemicals and bacterial pathogens; pollution by nutrient-rich water causing large blooms of algae and aquatic plants that in its turn leaves little oxygen for fish and other aquatic animals, resulting in the eutrophication followed by suffocation of aquatic life. According to the research provided, the publication recommends ongoing monitoring of not only the lake's inflowing waters, but also seasonal sources of bacterial pollution caused by migratory birds. According to monitoring, the integration of constructed wetlands, localized spraying of bacteriophage cocktails, and feeding the birds, who are potential carriers of pathogenic bacteria, with food supplemented with BCs will help limit bacterial contamination, improve the habitat for local and migratory waterfowl, and ensure the biosecurity of the area.

New challenges towards ecological management of Paliastomi Lake will significantly improve local environment with far-going global consequences

The publication is addressing the problems of pollution from agricultural sources; municipal wastewater and industry in line with the bacterial pollution caused by migratory waterfowl of Paliastomi Lake that is an internationally recognized habitat, wintery and transit area of the birds and an important tourism site. It reviews: the current state of the environment of Paliastomi Lake at the moment of the chemical and microbiological research and mathematical simulation modeling of possible dissemination of polluting chemicals and bacterial pathogens; pollution by nutrient-rich water causing large blooms of algae and aquatic plants that in its turn leaves little oxygen for fish and other aquatic animals, resulting in the eutrophication followed by suffocation of aquatic life.

Fine-scale tracking of wild waterfowl and their impact on highly pathogenic avian influenza outbreaks in the Republic of Korea, 2014–2015

Wild migratory waterfowl are considered one of the most important reservoirs and long-distance carriers of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI). Our study aimed to explore the spatial and temporal characteristics of wild migratory waterfowl’s wintering habitat in the Republic of Korea (ROK) and to evaluate the impact of these habitats on the risk of HPAI outbreaks in commercial poultry farms. The habitat use of 344 wild migratory waterfowl over four migration cycles was estimated based on tracking records. The association of habitat use with HPAI H5N8 outbreaks in poultry farms was evaluated using a multilevel logistic regression model. We found that a poultry farm within a wild waterfowl habitat had a 3–8 times higher risk of HPAI outbreak than poultry farms located outside of the habitat. The range of wild waterfowl habitats increased during autumn migration, and was associated with the epidemic peak of HPAI outbreaks on domestic poultry farms in the ROK. Our findings provide a better understanding of the dynamics of HPAI infection in the wildlife–domestic poultry interface and may help to establish early detection, and cost-effective preventive measures.

Experimental evidence of dispersal of invasive cyprinid eggs inside migratory waterfowl

Fish have somehow colonized isolated water bodies all over the world without human assistance. It has long been speculated that these colonization events are assisted by waterbirds, transporting fish eggs attached to their feet and feathers, yet empirical support for this is lacking. Recently, it was suggested that endozoochory (i.e., internal transport within the gut) might play a more important role, but only highly resistant diapause eggs of killifish have been found to survive passage through waterbird guts. Here, we performed a controlled feeding experiment, where developing eggs of two cosmopolitan, invasive cyprinids (common carp, Prussian carp) were fed to captive mallards. Live embryos of both species were retrieved from fresh feces and survived beyond hatching. Our study identifies an overlooked dispersal mechanism in fish, providing evidence for bird-mediated dispersal ability of soft-membraned eggs undergoing active development. Only 0.2% of ingested eggs survived gut passage, yet, given the abundance, diet, and movements of ducks in nature, our results have major implications for biodiversity conservation and invasion dynamics in freshwater ecosystems.