‘Elepaio “anting” with a garlic snail and a Schinus fruit

VanderWerf, Eric A.

doi:10.1648/0273-8570-76.2.134

Cited by 11 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 61 publications

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“…Birds also anoint themselves with a bizarre list of other items, including millipedes [187,188], caterpillars [189], garlic snails [190], bombardier beetles [191], citrus fruits [192,193,194], walnut juice [195], flowers [196,197], lawn chemicals [198] and even mothballs placed in gardens to repel vegetarian pests [199][200][201]. Many of these items reportedly have anti-parasite properties [201], but few careful tests have been carried out.…”

Section: Number Of Licementioning

confidence: 99%

How Birds Combat Ectoparasites

Clayton¹,

Koop²,

Harbison³

et al. 2010

TOOENIJ

222

211

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Birds are plagued by an impressive diversity of ectoparasites, ranging from feather-feeding lice, to featherdegrading bacteria. Many of these ectoparasites have severe negative effects on host fitness. It is therefore not surprising that selection on birds has favored a variety of possible adaptations for dealing with ectoparasites. The functional significance of some of these defenses has been well documented. Others have barely been studied, much less tested rigorously. In this article we review the evidence -or lack thereof -for many of the purported mechanisms birds have for dealing with ectoparasites. We concentrate on features of the plumage and its components, as well as anti-parasite behaviors. In some cases, we present original data from our own recent work. We make recommendations for future studies that could improve our understanding of this poorly known aspect of avian biology.

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Section: Number Of Licementioning

confidence: 99%

How Birds Combat Ectoparasites

Clayton¹,

Koop²,

Harbison³

et al. 2010

TOOENIJ

222

211

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“…However, extracts from five species of formicine ant (Formicidae: Hymenoptera) did not inhibit FDB growth in culture (Revis and Waller 2004). Birds also "ant" with other objects that contain antimicrobial compounds, including snails (VanderWerf 2005) and fruit (Clayton andVernon 1993, VanderWerf 2005). Experimental tests of anting behavior, such as that conducted by Lunt et al (2004), could determine whether anting influences FDB.…”

Section: How Prevalent Are Feather-degradingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Feather-Degrading Bacteria: A New Frontier in Avian and Host–parasite Research?

Gunderson

2008

Auk

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“…Some chemicals are produced by the birds themselves and some are sequestered or collected from external sources. Direct or indirect use of external chemicals examples include selective use of neem leaves (Azadirachta indica) in the nests by House Sparrows (Sengupta 1981); aromatic green plant material by European Starling (Clark & Mason 1988) and Blue Tits (Petit et al 2002) as protection against ectoparasites; formic acid or other chemicals used during anting (Revis & Waller 2004); use of Garlic snail and Schinus fruits by Hawaiian Elepaio (VanderWerf 2005); selecting specifically chemically rich pine trees for nesting as by Red-cockaded Woodpecker (Conner et al 2003) etc. Pitohui birds and birds of the genus Ifrita of Papua New Guinea contain neurotoxins in their feathers (Dumbacher 1999;Dumbacher et al 2000).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Chemistry of preen gland secretions of passerines: different pathways to same goal? why?

et al. 2005

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Passeriformes is the largest order of birds and includes one third of the bird species of the world, living in very diverse habitats. We investigated the chemistry of preen gland secretions of some groups of passerines from temperate regions found in diverse microhabitats. Some of the common components were mixtures of homologous monoesters made up of long chain acids and alcohols. Individual species had characteristic distribution of esters and was unique to a given species, although there were some individual variations. We compared the composition of acids and alcohols that formed same molecular weight esters in different species and we found that the combination of acids and alcohols to arrive at same molecular compositions varied distinctly between species. To compare compositions of over all acids and alcohols that formed the esters, the representative samples of secretions from the individual species were transesterfied the produce methyl esters and alcohols. We found that there were distinct differences in number of acids and alcohols that produced the combination of homologous mixtures of esters. Also they differed both qualitatively and quantitatively. There were also seasonal differences in the secretion components. Thus though the intact mixtures of esters in individual species had some similarities, they were very complex mixtures and differed characteristically for individual species. Here we discuss possible causes for evolution of these variations. We suggest that the evolution in variation of preen gland secretion is probably due to selective pressures caused by ectosymbionts such as feather-mites and feather-chewing lice that live on feathers and probably feed on the secretions and surrounding environments

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‘Elepaio “anting” with a garlic snail and a Schinus fruit

Cited by 11 publications

References 61 publications

How Birds Combat Ectoparasites

How Birds Combat Ectoparasites

Feather-Degrading Bacteria: A New Frontier in Avian and Host–parasite Research?

Chemistry of preen gland secretions of passerines: different pathways to same goal? why?

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