Characterization of Campylobacter From Resident Canada Geese in an Urban Environment

Abstract

ABSTRACT:Waterfowl are natural reservoirs for zoonotic pathogens, and abundant resident (nonmigratory) Canada Geese (Branta canadensis) in urban and suburban environments pose the potential for transmission of Campylobacter through human contact with fecal deposits and contaminated water. In June 2008 and July 2009, we collected 318 fecal samples from resident Canada Geese at 21 locations in and around Greensboro, North Carolina, to test for Campylobacter. All campylobacter species detected were C. jejuni isolates, and prevalences in 2008 and 2009 were 5.0% and 16.0%, respectively. Prevalence of C. jejuni-positive sampling sites was 21% (3/14) and 40% (6/15) in 2008 and 2009, respectively. All C. jejuni isolates were susceptible to a panel of six antimicrobial agents (tetracycline, streptomycin, erythromycin, kanamycin, nalidixic acid, and ciprofloxacin). We used pulsed-field gel electrophoresis and flatyping to identify several strain types among these isolates. Multilocus sequence typing of representative isolates revealed six sequence types, of which two (ST-3708 and ST-4368) were new, two (ST-702 and ST-4080) had been detected previously among C. jejuni from geese, and two (ST-991 and ST-4071) were first reported in C. jejuni from an environmental water source and a human illness, respectively. These results indicate a diverse population of antibiotic-susceptible C. jejuni in resident Canada Geese in and around Greensboro, North Carolina, and suggest a need for additional assessment of the public health risk associated with resident Canada Geese in urban and suburban areas.

Epidemiology of Campylobacter, Salmonella and antimicrobial resistant Escherichia coli in free‐living Canada geese (Branta canadensis) from three sources in southern Ontario

“…The overall Campylobacter prevalence of 11.2% in our study falls within this range. It appears that C. coli is an uncommon finding in Canada geese, as other studies which have set out to measure the prevalence of various Campylobacter species in Canada geese have not isolated it previously (Keller & Shriver, ; Rutledge et al., ). We isolated C. coli from spring faecal samples only, and some of these birds were sampled in close proximity to a swine research farm (sow farrow‐to‐finish hog operation).…”

Potential disease transmission from wild geese and swans to livestock, poultry and humans: a review of the scientific literature from a One Health perspective

“…[24] Predominantly negative results have been obtained in US studies of Canada geese, where 0% (n = 318) and 0.01% (n = 449) respectively of the samples from non-migratory Canada geese were positive for Salmonella spp. [94,95] Likewise, in a New Zealand study of Canada geese (n = 80) and black swans Cygnus atratus (n = 80) all samples were negative. [96] Refsum alone and together with co-workers [85,90] proposed that the importance of waterfowl in spreading Salmonella bacteria is limited, except for birds resident in areas highly contaminated by human waste or domestic animal manure.…”

Animal Reservoirs of Shiga Toxin-ProducingEscherichia coli

“…Water fowl, including geese and ducks, are identified as a source of surface water and pasture contamination (107,117,118) and implicated as the source of numerous food-borne pathogens (119)(120)(121)(122). One goose is reportedly capable of producing up to 5 pounds of feces per day, and this can result in mass contamination, since these birds are usually found in flocks (123).…”