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Low haemosporidian diversity and one key-host species in a bird malaria community on a mid-atlantic island (sao miguel, azores)

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Author

Summary, in English

When host species colonize new areas, the parasite assemblage infecting the hosts might change, with some parasite species being lost and others newly acquired. These changes would likely lead to novel selective forces on both host and its parasites. We investigated the avian blood parasites in the passerine bird community on the mid-Atlantic island of Sao Miguel, Azores, a bird community originating from continental Europe. The presence of haemosporidian blood parasites belonging to the genera Haemoproteus, Plasmodium, and Leucocytozoon was assessed using polymerase chain reaction. We found two Plasmodium lineages and two Leucocytozoon lineages in 11 bird species (84% of all breeding passerine species) on the island. These line ages were unevenly distributed across bird species. The Eurasian Blackbird (Turdus merula) was the key-host species (total parasite prevalence of 57%), harboring the main proportion of parasite infections. Except for Eurasian Blackbirds, all bird species had significantly lower prevalence and parasite diversity compared to their continental populations. We propose that in evolutionary novel bird communities, single species may act as key hosts by harboring the main part of the parasite fauna from which parasites "leak" into the other species. This would create very different host parasite associations in areas recently colonized by hosts as compared to in their source populations.

Publishing year

2011

Language

English

Pages

849-859

Publication/Series

Journal of Wildlife Diseases

Volume

47

Issue

4

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

Wildlife Disease Association

Topic

  • Biological Sciences

Keywords

  • Azores
  • Haemoproteus
  • key host
  • Leucocytozoon
  • Plasmodium
  • prevalence

Status

Published

Project

  • Malaria in birds

Research group

  • Molecular Ecology and Evolution Lab

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 0090-3558