Coquillettidia (Culicidae, Diptera) mosquitoes are natural vectors of avian malaria in Africa

Njabo, Kevin Y.; Cornel, Anthony J.; Sehgal, Ravinder N. M.; Loiseau, Claire; Buermann, Wolfgang; Harrigan, Ryan J.; Pollinger, John P.; Valkiūnas, Gediminas; Smith, Thomas B.

doi:10.1186/1475-2875-8-193

Cited by 80 publications

(68 citation statements)

References 49 publications

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“…Moreover, in addition to mosquito breeding, it is also possible that the landscape affects the mosquito host‐seeking behaviour potentially affecting the dynamics of parasite transmission. Here, these results agree with previous studies reporting an increased probability of Plasmodium infection in the proximity of freshwater, ponds and slow rivers in mosquitoes (Ishtiaq et al., ; Njabo et al., ) and birds (Krams et al., ; Wood et al., ). In addition, the environmental conditions reflected by higher NDVI values may be related to the availability of breeding and resting habitats for both mosquitoes and birds (Lillesand et al., ; Reisen et al., ).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Ecological determinants of avian malaria infections: An integrative analysis at landscape, mosquito and vertebrate community levels

Ferraguti

Puente

Bensch

et al. 2018

Journal of Animal Ecology

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Vector and host communities, as well as habitat characteristics, may have important but different impacts on the prevalence, richness and evenness of vector-borne parasites. We investigated the relative importance of (1) the mosquito community composition, (2) the vertebrate community composition and (3) landscape characteristics on the prevalence, richness and evenness of avian Plasmodium. We hypothesized that parasite prevalence will be more affected by vector-related parameters, while host parameters should be also important to explain Plasmodium richness and evenness. We sampled 2,588 wild house sparrows (Passer domesticus) and 340,829 mosquitoes, and we performed vertebrate censuses at 45 localities in the Southwest of Spain. These localities included urban, rural and natural landscapes that were characterized by several habitat variables. Twelve Plasmodium lineages were identified in house sparrows corresponding to three major clades. Variation partitioning showed that landscape characteristics explained the highest fraction of variation in all response variables (21.0%-44.8%). Plasmodium prevalence was in addition explained by vector-related variables (5.4%) and its interaction with landscape (10.2%). Parasite richness and evenness were mostly explained by vertebrate community-related variables. The structuring role of landscape characteristics in vector and host communities was a key factor in determining parasite prevalence, richness and evenness, although the role of each factor differed according to the parasite parameters studied. These results show that the biotic and abiotic contexts are important to explain the transmission dynamics of mosquito-borne pathogens in the wild.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 93%

Ecological determinants of avian malaria infections: An integrative analysis at landscape, mosquito and vertebrate community levels

Ferraguti

Puente

Bensch

et al. 2018

Journal of Animal Ecology

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“…(figure 2), as well as more sites in West Africa where the sampling density was relatively low. In addition, research should also concentrate on insect vectors of avian parasites in Africa that are largely unstudied [49], and more thoroughly assess factors such as deforestation, and other anthropogenic changes that may critically impact pathogen prevalence in these systems.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Spatially explicit predictions of blood parasites in a widely distributed African rainforest bird

Sehgal

Buermann²,

Harrigan³

et al. 2010

Proc. R. Soc. B.

102

142

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Critical to the mitigation of parasitic vector-borne diseases is the development of accurate spatial predictions that integrate environmental conditions conducive to pathogen proliferation. Species of Plasmodium and Trypanosoma readily infect humans, and are also common in birds. Here, we develop predictive spatial models for the prevalence of these blood parasites in the olive sunbird (Cyanomitra olivacea). Since this species exhibits high natural parasite prevalence and occupies diverse habitats in tropical Africa, it represents a distinctive ecological model system for studying vector-borne pathogens. We used PCR and microscopy to screen for haematozoa from 28 sites in Central and West Africa. Species distribution models were constructed to associate ground-based and remotely sensed environmental variables with parasite presence. We then used machine-learning algorithm models to identify relationships between parasite prevalence and environmental predictors. Finally, predictive maps were generated by projecting model outputs to geographically unsampled areas. Results indicate that for Plasmodium spp., the maximum temperature of the warmest month was most important in predicting prevalence. For Trypanosoma spp., seasonal canopy moisture variability was the most important predictor. The models presented here visualize gradients of disease prevalence, identify pathogen hotspots and will be instrumental in studying the effects of ecological change on these and other pathogens.

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“…P. relictum , one of the best studied species of avian malaria, can complete development in at least 26 mosquito species from four different genera ( Culex , Aedes , Culiseta , and Anopheles ) in the laboratory. More recently, molecular assays for avian malaria have identified a number of potential vector species 31–36 . Although few of these studies have confirmed the presence of salivary gland sporozoites or demonstrated transmission, they support the notion that relatively little host specificity among most parasite–vector associations may facilitate switching of vertebrate hosts 37 …”

Section: Natural Historymentioning

confidence: 99%

Ecology and conservation biology of avian malaria

LaPointe

Atkinson

Samuel

2012

Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences

243

254

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Avian malaria is a worldwide mosquito-borne disease caused by Plasmodium parasites. These parasites occur in many avian species but primarily affect passerine birds that have not evolved with the parasite. Host pathogenicity, fitness, and population impacts are poorly understood. In contrast to continental species, introduced avian malaria poses a substantial threat to naive birds on Hawaii, the Galapagos, and other archipelagoes. In Hawaii, transmission is maintained by susceptible native birds, competence and abundance of mosquitoes, and a disease reservoir of chronically infected native birds. Although vector habitat and avian communities determine the geographic distribution of disease, climate drives transmission patterns ranging from continuous high infection in warm lowland forests, seasonal infection in midelevation forests, and disease-free refugia in cool high-elevation forests. Global warming is expected to increase the occurrence, distribution, and intensity of avian malaria across this elevational gradient and threaten high-elevation refugia, which is the key to survival of many susceptible Hawaiian birds. Increased temperatures may have already increased global avian malaria prevalence and contributed to an emergence of disease in New Zealand.

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Coquillettidia (Culicidae, Diptera) mosquitoes are natural vectors of avian malaria in Africa

Cited by 80 publications

References 49 publications

Ecological determinants of avian malaria infections: An integrative analysis at landscape, mosquito and vertebrate community levels

Ecological determinants of avian malaria infections: An integrative analysis at landscape, mosquito and vertebrate community levels

Spatially explicit predictions of blood parasites in a widely distributed African rainforest bird

Ecology and conservation biology of avian malaria

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