No abstract

A survey was carried out to investigate the aerobic bacterial flora of captive houbara (Chlamydotis undulata), kori (Ardeotis kori) and rufous-crested (Eupodotis ruficrista) bustards maintained at the National Avian Research Center, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. None of the houbara or rufous-crested bustards sampled were bred in captivity by the Center but four of the kori bustards sampled were captive-bred. Faecal, cloacal, oropharyngeal and skin samples (from under the wing) from clinically normal bustards were taken during routine handling of the birds. Samples were also taken from clinical cases, carcasses and failed eggs. Culture for fungi was also carried out. Bacteria belonging to several different genera were isolated from the three species, they included Staphylococcus aurais and Escherichia coli and also species of Aeromonas, Bacillus, Citrobacter, Enterobacter, Klebsiella, Micrococcus, Proteus, Pseudomonas, Salmonella, Serratia, Sphingobacterium, Staphylococcus, Streptococcus and Vibrio. Fungal cultures yielded species of Aspergillus and Candida albicans. This appears to be the first bacterial survey carried out on bustards and shows that they are colonized by a wide range of bacteria, some of which were also isolated from disease conditions.

Blood samples were obtained from clinically normal captive adult kori bustards (Ardeotis kori) in order to establish normal reference blood chemistry values for the species. Twenty-four different tests were conducted using a Kodak Ektachem DT II dry-chemistry system. A comparison of the values obtained was made with those of two sub-species of houbara bustard (Chlamydotis undulata macqueenii and Chlamydotis undulata undulata) and the great bustard (Otis tarda), and showed some similarities between the different species. The results obtained from this study provide the first set of published data for normal blood chemistry of the kori bustard.

SUMMARYBlood samples were obtained from two sub-species of captive houbara bustards (Chlamydotis undulata undulata and Chlamydotis undulara macqueenii) in order to establish normal blood chemistry reference values. The two sub-species were housed under the same conditions, the only difference being that C. u. undulata were fed exclusively on concentrated feed (in the form of pellets) and C. u. macqueenii were fed on a mixture of concentrated feed, minced meat and mixed vegetables/fruits. Twenty one different tests were conducted using a Kodak Ektachem DT II drychemistry system. Significant differences between the two sub-species were found for glucose, creatinine, total bilirubin, total protein, albumin, globulin, albumin/globulin ratio, aspartate aminotransferase, alanine aminotransferase, alkaline phosphatase, ammonia, magnesium, phosphorus, potassium, cholesterol and triglycerides. The results obtained from this study provide important reference blood chemistry values for the two sub-species and demonstrate a possible effect of different dietary regimes or simply a genotypic variation between the sub-species.

telfordi. Haemoproteus tendeiroi was found alone in most of the infected birds, whereas a combination of H. telfordi and H. tendeiroi was found together in two birds, and only one bird was infected with H. telfordi alone. In eight recently imported rufous-crested bustards (Eupodotis ruficrista), 50% were found to be infected with haemoparasites. Four birds were infected with H. telfordi and one of these was also infected with H. tendeiroi. The schizonts for the two Haemoproteus species described in this study may have had predilection for skeletal muscle as these were not detected in several other tissue samples examined from known infected birds.