Haemosporida prevalence and diversity are similar in endangered wild whooping cranes (Grus americana) and sympatric sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis)

Abstract

SUMMARYThe population growth of endangered whooping cranes (Grus americana) is not consistent with species recovery goals, and the impact of parasite infection on whooping crane populations is largely unknown. Disease ecology and epidemiology research of endangered species is often hindered by limited ability to conduct invasive sampling on the target taxa. Accordingly, we hypothesized that sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis) would be a useful surrogate species to investigate the health impacts of Haemosporida infection in whooping cranes. Our goal was to compare the prevalence and diversity of Haemosporida infection between whooping cranes and sandhill cranes. We detected an overall infection prevalence of 83·6% (n = 61) in whooping cranes and 59·6% (n = 47) and 63·6 (n = 22) in two sympatric sandhill crane populations captured in Texas. Prevalence was significantly lower in allopatric sandhill cranes captured in New Mexico (12·1%, n = 33). Haemoproteus antigonis was the most abundant haemoparasite in cranes, present in 57·4% of whooping cranes and 39·2% of sandhill cranes; Plasmodium and Leucocytozoon were present at significantly lower levels. The high prevalence of Haemosporida in whooping cranes and sympatric sandhill cranes, with shared parasite lineages between the two species, supports sandhill cranes as a surrogate species for understanding health threats to endangered whooping cranes.

Avian haemosporidian parasites of accipitriform raptors

“…Lineage pGRW09 was also reported from the European bee-eater Merops apiaster in Portugal and Germany, confirming the presence of a P. circumflexumrelated lineage in birds of the order Coraciiformes [86]. Lineage pSW5, which was also linked to P. circumflexum [130], was found mainly in Anseriformes and Gruiformes in the USA and Japan [59,131,132].…”

Trends in the occurrence of large Whooping Crane groups during migration in the great plains, USA

“…Wetland loss has likely resulted in increasing concentrations of Whooping Cranes in aquatic habitats, which pose significant disease risks including avian cholera, botulism, tuberculosis, and coccidiosis (Windingstad, 1988;Blanchong et al, 2006;CWS and USFWS, 2007). A number of other studies have documented potentially harmful parasites in Whooping Cranes that can result from high waterbird densities, including from Sandhill Cranes (Grus canadensis), with which Whooping Cranes often forage during migration (Lu et al, 2013;Vogel et al, 2013;Bertram et al, 2017). Moreover, increasingly large groupings of Whooping Cranes present a potential mass mortality risk from extreme weather events like tornadoes and hail storms (Lingle, 1997;Higgins and Johnson, 1978;Narwade et al, 2014).…”

Temporospatial Shifts in Sandhill Crane Staging in the Central Platte River Valley in Response to Climatic variation and Habitat Change

“…Krapu et al (2014) also noted that staging length in the CPRV was negatively correlated with arrival dates, suggesting that early arrivals tend to stay longer. A high number of Sandhill Cranes extending the period in which they stage at the CPRV will likely put additional pressure on agricultural foraging resources (Pearse et al 2010, Salvi 2012, as well as increase the disease risk for cranes and other waterbird species that overlap in wetland habitat use (Vogel et al 2013, Bertram et al 2017.…”

“…For instance, following conservation land purchases and restorations within segment 8 from 1998 to 2016, we found that meadow-prairie cover increased 12.1% but still totaled only 13.3% in 2016, which is well below the cover associated with segments 1 (20.7%) and 3 (49.6%) where Sandhill Crane use appears to be increasing most significantly (Tables 5,8). Further concentration of Sandhill Crane densities along the CPRV promotes a potential increase in disease risk for Sandhill Cranes and other organisms, including Whooping Cranes (Lu et al 2013, Bertram et al 2017, Fenton et al 2018. Additionally, increased densities of Sandhill Cranes in fewer reaches of the CPRV escalates the potential risk for mass mortality incidents resulting from extreme weather events like hail and ice storms (Higgins and Johnson 1978, Lingle 1997, Narwade et al 2014.…”