Parasites ofColumba livia(Aves: Columbiformes) in Tenerife (Canary Islands) and their role in the conservation biology of the Laurel pigeons

Abstract

Summary:The prevalence and intensity of the parasites from 50 wild doves (Columba livia) from the city of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, in the island of Tenerife (Canary Archipelago], were studied. The following ectoparasites were found in apparently healthy pigeons (prevalences are shown in percentage (%) and mean intensities with their standard deviations): the acari Dermanyssus gallinae (De Geer, 1778) (6 241 .0 ± 138.9) and Tinaminyssus melloi Fain, 1962 (10 %, 218.3 ± 1 17.3); the louses, Columbicola columbae Linnaeus, 1758 (100 %, 1 1 1 .4 ± 76.8) and Campanulotes bidentatus Scopoli, 1763 (94 %, 48.4 ± 26.6); and the pigeon fly, Pseudolynchia canariensis Macquart, 1 839 (36 %, 6.2 ± 1 .6). The endoparasites we found, were: a haemoprotozoan species, Haemoproteus columbae Kruze, 1 890 (82 %, 14.8 ± 10.3 per 1000); coccidian oocysts, Eimeria sp. (50 %, 0.2 x 10 3 ± 1.7 x 10 3 per gr); a cestode species Raillietina micracantha (Fuhrmann, 1 909) Lopez Neyra, 1947 (44 %, 12.3 ± 9.4); and four nematode species, Tetrameres (Telrameres) fissispina (Diesing, 1861) Travassos, 1915 (4 %, 99.5 ± 34,1), Synhimantus (Dispharynx) spiralis (Molin, 1858) (8 %, 46.8 ± 1 1.6), Ascaridia columbae (Gmelin, 1790) Travassos, 1913 (40 %, 8.4 ± 8.8) and Aonchotbeca sp. (1 8 %, 6.0 ± 3.1). Several species detected in our study can be pathogens for C. bollii and C. junoniae, which are endemic pigeons of the Canary Islands, considered endangered species. Parasites (ectoparasites, protozoa and helminths) of C. livia found in Tenerife and others from wild and farm birds in the island were considered as healthy controls. KEY WORDS :Columba livia, ectoparasites, helminths, protozoa, Tenerife. De Geer, 1778) 16 %, 241,0 ± 138,9) et Tinaminyssus melloi Fain, 1962 des poux, Columbicola columbae linnaeus, 1758 (100%, 1 11 ,4 ± 76,8) et Campanulotes bidentatus Scopoli, 1763 (94 %, 48,4 ± 26,6); et la mouche du pigeon, Pseudolynchia canariensis Macquart, 1839 (36 %, 6,2 ± 1,6 (Fuhrmann, 1909) López Neyra, 1947; et quatre espèces de nématodes, Tetrameres Résumé : PARASITES DE COLUMBA LIVIA (AVES : COLUMBIFORMES) DE TÉNÉRIFE (ÎLES CANARIES) ET LEUR RÔLE DANS LA BIOLOGIE DE LA CONSERVATION DES PIGEONS Nous avons étudié la prévalence et l'intensité des parasites trouvés chez 50 pigeons sauvages (Columba livia ). Il s'agissait de pigeons de Santa Cruz de Tenerife, capitale de l'île de Ténérife (Iles Canaries). Nous avons représenté les prévalences en pourcentage (%) et les intensités moyennes avec leurs déviations standard. Nous avons trouvé chez des pigeons apparemment en bonne santé les ectoparasites suivants : des acariens,Dermanyssus gallinae (

Gastrointestinal helminths of two populations of wild pigeons (Columba livia) in Brazil

“…in wild C. livia vary widely between different locations, ranging from 5.0 to 46.7% and from 1.7 to 100.0%, respectively (TORO et al, 1999;FORONDA et al, 2004;BEGUM & SEHRIN, 2012;EDOSOMWAN et al, 2012;DIAKOU et al, 2013;DIPINETO et al, 2013). The MII (9.1) and range of parasitism (1-144) for A. columbae in the present study were similar to those in previous reports: mean intensities of 8.4 and 8.5 and ranges of 1-107 parasites (FORONDA et al, 2004;SENLIK et al, 2005), but lower MII (3.2) was observed among 55 semi-captive C. livia in the state of Rio de Janeiro (SILVA et al, 1990). Differently, a mean value of 12.3 was reported for Raillietina sp.…”

“…Nonspecific helminths infecting C. livia have been reported (FORONDA et al, 2004) and can vary according to the season, sex, and locations (SENLIK et al, 2005;SMITH & FEDYNICH, 2012). Despite this, little attention has been given to this avian species in Brazil, where its numbers have been increasing.…”

“…They are often present at high densities in urban areas such as public parks and live very close to humans and domestic/wild animal species (HARLIN, 1994). These close interactions can be of concern, since pigeons might serve as a potential reservoir of parasites, with the capacity to spread them to wild birds, including threatened species (FORONDA et al, 2004;RADFAR et al, 2012).…”

Two Eimeria Species Isolated from Wild Japanese Rock Ptarmigans (Lagopus mutus japonicus) in Japan

“…Parasite infection is one of the factors influencing population fluctuations of wild mammals and avians [1,3,8], and it should be noted that gastrointestinal parasites affect the red grouse (L. lagopus scoticus) population in Britain [2,5]. However, there are only a few studies on parasitic infections in the Japanese rock ptarmigan; including reports on blood parasites [4] and one of the intestinal coccidian parasites, Eimeria uekii, which was reported in 1981 [6].…”

Presencia de parásitos y enterobacterias en palomas ferales (Columba livia) en áreas urbanas en Envigado, Colombia

“…Este es considerado como uno de los protozoarios patógenos en aves que afectan el sistema circulatorio, éstos fueron encontrados en una alta proporción en el estudio (72,5%), superior a los reportados en el Oriente Medio (62%) [19] y Brasil (67%) [10]; y por debajo de prevalencias reportadas en África (80%) [20] y España (82%) [21]. No se encontraron reportes de transmisión de Haemoproteus spp de aves a humanos.…”