Geographic Survey of Oxyspirura Petrowi Among Wild Northern Bobwhites in the United States

Kubečka, Bradley W.; Bruno, Andrea; Rollins, Dale

doi:10.7290/nqsp083tm1

Cited by 5 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 14 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…There appear to be latitudinal differences in helminth prevalence and intensity in bobwhites in Texas (Olsen and Fedynich 2016; Kubečka et al 2017, Bruno et al 2018). Eyeworm prevalence in bobwhites has been documented to range from 40% (64/161; Bruno et al 2018) to 86% (31/36; Dunham et al 2014) in the northern part of the state (Rolling Plains), whereas prevalence has ranged from 4% (14/356; Shea et al 2021) to 9% (22/244; Olsen and Fedynich 2016) in the southern part (Rio Grande Plains).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring a Plant-Diversity Hypothesis to Explain Helminth Prevalence in Northern Bobwhite (Colinus Virginianus) in Texas, Usa

Herschberger,

Rainey,

Hernández

et al. 2023

Journal of Wildlife Diseases

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Helminths, in particular eyeworms (Oxyspirura petrowi) and cecal worms (Aulonocephalus pennula), may be a factor influencing northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) populations in Texas. Previous research has shown a discrepancy in helminth infections between the Rolling Plains and Rio Grande Plains of Texas, US, potentially caused by differences in intermediate host distribution and abundance. We explored an alternative hypothesis centered on plant diversity, given that many plants possess phytochemicals with anthelmintic properties. We predicted that plant diversity would be greater and bobwhite diet more diverse in the Rio Grande Plains than the Rolling Plains, which in turn would potentially expose bobwhites to more plants with anthelmintic properties and therefore result in lower parasite prevalence and intensity. We conducted a literature review of plant diversity, anthelmintic plants, and bobwhite diet in Texas to explore this hypothesis. We also quantified the relationship between helminth prevalence in bobwhites and latitude. We documented trends for higher plant species richness, greater number of anthelmintic plants, and more diverse bobwhite diet in the Rio Grande Plains compared to the Rolling Plains. In addition, we documented a trend for increasing helminth prevalence with latitude for eyeworms but not cecal worms. Our study provides circumstantial evidence supporting the plant-diversity hypothesis and warrants experimental testing.

show abstract