Vector abundance determines<i>Trypanosoma</i>prevalence in nestling blue tits

Puente, Josué Martínez‐de la; Martı́nez, Javier; Aguilar, Juan Rivero de; Cerro, Sara del; Merino, Santiago

doi:10.1017/s0031182013000371

Cited by 26 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 57 publications

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“…Citronella oil has been used in nests of Great Tits ( Parus major ) and Blue Tits ( Cyanistes caeruleus ) to reduce numbers of flying blood‐sucking insects, such as midges ( Diptera ceratopogonidae ) and black flies ( Diptera simuliidae ; Martínez‐de la Puente et al. 2009, ). Citronella is an oil derived from lemon grass ( Cymbopogon spp.)…”

Section: Natural Insecticidesmentioning

confidence: 99%

A review of available methods and description of a new method for eliminating ectoparasites from bird nests

2015

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Bird nests offer an ideal situation to manipulate ectoparasites and study how they impact hosts. Several methods are available to eliminate parasites from nests and each has its own suite of advantages and disadvantages. For example, recent toxicity research has revealed that some commonly used insecticides may not be suitable for use in experiments with nestlings. This highlights the need for investigators to control for the effects of methods used to eliminate nest parasites within experimental designs. Methods that can be used across treatment groups are also often needed to study the effects of variation in parasite intensity. To aid investigators in deciding which method(s) to use, we provide a comprehensive review of available methods for eliminating nest ectoparasites and also describe a new heat gun method. We tested the effectiveness of the heat‐gun method with nests of Barn Swallows (Hirundo rustica) to which 100 nest mites were added and then quantified the number of surviving mites and other naturally occurring arthropods. We found that fully heated nests had significantly fewer mites and other arthropods than partially heated or control nests. Use of the heat gun had no negative effects on nestling growth or mortality rates. In studies of avian nest ectoparasites, investigators need to consider methods that can be used across treatment groups to ensure that unaccounted for toxicity effects are not influencing results and leading to underestimation of the often subtle effects of ectoparasites on birds.

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Section: Natural Insecticidesmentioning

confidence: 99%

A review of available methods and description of a new method for eliminating ectoparasites from bird nests

2015

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“…The presence and abundance of insect vectors is a key factor affecting the interaction between blood parasites and wild bird populations [ 1 , 2 ]. Indeed, habitat characteristics influence both birds’ habitat choice during the breeding season and the viability of insect vector populations, and may ultimately determine the success of blood parasite transmission [ 3 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Low prevalence of blood parasites in a long-distance migratory raptor: the importance of host habitat

et al. 2015

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BackgroundThe low prevalence of blood parasites in some bird species may be related to the habitats they frequent, the inexistence of the right host-parasite assemblage or the immunological capacity of the host. Here, we assess the parasite load of breeding populations of Eleonora’s falcon (Falco eleonorae), a medium-sized long-distance migratory raptor that breeds on small isolated islets throughout the Mediterranean basin and overwinters in inland Madagascar.MethodsWe examined the prevalence and genetic diversity of the blood parasites belonging to the genera Plasmodium, Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon in Eleonora’s falcon nestlings from five colonies and in adults from two colonies from nesting sites distributed throughout most of the species’ breeding range.ResultsNone of the 282 nestlings analysed were infected by blood parasites; on the other hand, the lineages of Plasmodium, Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon were all found to infect adults. Our results support the idea of no local transmission of vector-borne parasites in marine habitats. Adult Eleonora’s falcons thus may be infected by parasites when on migration or in their wintering areas.ConclusionThe characteristics of marine environments with a lack of appropriate vectors may thus be the key factor determining the absence of local transmission of blood parasites. By comparing the parasite lineages isolated in this species with those previously found in other birds we were able to infer the most likely areas for the transmission of the various parasite lineages.

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“…sex or age), or external factors such as insect vectors. Th e eff ect of these factors on host fi tness has been formalised in the selection, immunity and vector hypothesis (Allander and Bennett 1994, Meril ä et al 1995, McCurdy et al 1998, Dawson and Bortolotti 2000, Sol et al 2003, Hasselquist et al 2007, Mart í nez-de la Puente et al 2013). Th us, factors like host age and vector activity could have a dramatic impact on the prevalence and infection intensity.…”

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confidence: 99%

MHC‐I provides both quantitative resistance and susceptibility to blood parasites in blue tits in the wild

Aguilar

Westerdahl

Puente

et al. 2016

Journal of Avian Biology

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Major histocompatibility complex (MHC) genes are central for the adaptive immune response against parasites. Here, we investigated potential associations among MHC-I alleles and blood parasite infections in a natural breeding population of a passerine bird, the blue tit Cyanistes caeruleu s, in central Spain. We screened both infection status (presence/absence of infection) and infection intensity to the pathogenic blood parasites Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon . Th ree MHC-I alleles (UA104, UA108 and UA117) were associated with higher or lower infection intensities by Leucocytozoon . Interestingly, these associations were dependent on age and were found both among young and adult birds. No MHC alleles were associated with infection intensity by Haemoproteus parasites. In addition, no signifi cant relationships were detected between infection status by Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon infections and MHC alleles. Th e very high prevalence of these two parasites in our study population (79 -100%) poses challenges to identify associations with infection status and also suggests that clearance of infections may be rare. In conclusion, associations between specifi c MHC-I alleles and Leucocytozoon parasites were related to either high or low infection intensities, and hence increased susceptibility or resistance to infection.

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Vector abundance determinesTrypanosomaprevalence in nestling blue tits

Cited by 26 publications

References 57 publications

A review of available methods and description of a new method for eliminating ectoparasites from bird nests

A review of available methods and description of a new method for eliminating ectoparasites from bird nests

Low prevalence of blood parasites in a long-distance migratory raptor: the importance of host habitat

MHC‐I provides both quantitative resistance and susceptibility to blood parasites in blue tits in the wild

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