“…It is deemed a neglected pathogen by the WHO, and birds may constitute an infectious source to human infections by C. meleagridis (Wang et al, 2014).Cryptosporidium meleagridis has been detected in rock doves (Columbia livia) in China (Li et al, 2015), the Harris's hawk (Parabuteo unicinctus) and the European turtle dove (Streptopelia turtur) in Spain, the two former also sharing habitat with invasive monk parakeets (Myiopsitta monachus) in Chile (Briceño et al, 2019;Reboredo-Fernández et al, 2015). Urban eared doves (Zenaida auriculata) are also sympatric to monk parakeets in Santiago and have been found to harbour C. meleagridis and Cryptosporidium galli in Brazil (de Seixas et al, 2019). The monk parakeet has been an invasive species in Santiago for 50 years, and its role as an urban ecosystem engineer may be relevant, not only to bird ecology, but also to environmen-…”