Alien Birds in Sub-Saharan Africa: An Overview

Population Studies on different agricultural and other bird species were carried out at Students farm, College farm, Agri biodiversity park, and Agricultural Research Institute farm areas of Professor Jayashankar Telangana State Agricultural University (PJTSAU) Campus in semiarid region of Telangana state covering an area of about 36 Sq.km. for a period of eleven years (2012 to 2023). Population diversity of 92 species of different birds, and their distribution within the university campus farm areas were recorded. Important among them are 9 species namely: Blue rock pigeon (Columba livia), Spotted dove (Streptopelia chinensis), Rose ringed parakeet (Psittacula krameri),Common myna (Acridotheres tristis), House crow (Corvus splendens), House sparrow (Passer domesticus), Baya weaver bird (Ploceus philippinus), White throated munia (Lonchura malabarica), and Peafowl (Pavo cristatus) which depredate experimental field crops among them only few birds such as: Rose ringed parakeets, House crows, House sparrows, Pigeons, Baya weavers, Peafowls and Munias were serious bird pests to major agricultural and horticultural crops. The University farm areas were found to be the most preferred habitat for many of these birds, it could be due to availability of food, breeding, roosting and resting sites in abundance because of more agricultural croplands and agro forestry trees.

Out of 225 birds, distributed over 26 species, examined from Punjab, India, during 1973–75, a total of 269 mites were discovered from 7 bird species. These mites belonged to 7 families and 5 genera. The mites discovered from different hosts were:CHEYLETIDAE—Bakericheyla sp., from house sparrow (Passer domesticus); EPIDERMOPTIDAE—Strelkoviacarus sp., from house sparrow, common myna (Acridotheres tristis), common house crow (Corvus splendens) and bank myna (Acridotheres ginginianus); GABUCINIDAE—Gabucinia sp., from common house crow, common myna and house sparrow; HARPYRHYNCHIDAE—from common house crow; PROCTOPHYLLODIDAE-Proctophyllodes picae (Koch), from tree pie (Denddrocitta vagabunda), house sparrow, common myna and bank myna, and Proctophyllodes orientalis Gaud from house sparrow; RHINONYSSIDAE—from house sparrow and bank myna; TROUESSARTIIDAE—Trouessartia sp., from bank myna.

A revision of the family Cerococcidae Balachowsky (Hemiptera: Sternorrhyncha, Coccomorpha) with particular reference to species from the Afrotropical, western Palaearctic and western Oriental Regions, with the revival of Antecerococcus Green and description of a new genus and fifteen new species, and with ten new synonomies.

The Hydrachnidia (water mites) represent the most important group of the Arachnida in fresh water. Over 6,000 species have been described worldwide, representing 57 families, 81 subfamilies and more than 400 genera. The article analyzes extant water mite diversity and biogeography. Data on distribution and species richness of water mites are substantial but still far from complete. Many parts of the world are poorly investigated, Oriental and Afrotropical regions in particular. Moreover, information among different freshwater habitats is unbalanced with springs and interstitial waters disproportionately unrepresented. Therefore, more than 10,000 species could be reasonably expected to occur in inland waters worldwide. Based on available information, the Palaearctic region represents one of the better investigated areas with the highest number of species recorded (1,642 species). More than 1,000 species have been recorded in each of the Neotropical (1,305 species) and Nearctic regions (1,025 species). Known species richness is lower in Afrotropical (787 species) and Australasian (694 species) regions, and lowest in the Oriental region (554 species). The total number of genera is not correlated with species richness and is distinctly higher in the Neotropical (164 genera); genus richness is similar in the Palaearctic, Nearctic and Australasian regions (128–131 genera) and is lower in the Afrotropical and Oriental regions with 110 and 94 genera, respectively. A mean number of about three genera per family occur in the Palaeartic, Nearctic and Oriental while an average of more than four genera characterizes the families of Australasian and Afrotropical regions and more than five genera those of the Neotropical. Australasian fauna is also characterized by the highest percentage of endemic genera (62%), followed by Neotropical (50.6%) and Afrotropical (47.2%) regions. Lower values are recorded for the Palaearctic (26.9%), Oriental (24.4%) and Nearctic (21.4%). The Palaearctic and Nearctic have the highest faunistic similarity, some minor affinities are also evident for the generic diversification of Holarctic and Oriental families. The faunas of Southern Hemisphere bioregions are more distinct and characterized by the presence of ancient Gondwanan clades with a regional diversification particularly evident in the Neotropics and Australasia. This scenario of water mite diversity and distribution reflect the basic vicariance pattern, isolation, phylogenetic diversification, recent climatic vicissitudes and episodes of dispersal between adjacent land masses together with extant ecological factors can be evoked to explain distribution patterns at a global scale.

Nest-site competition between invasive and native cavity nesting birds and its implication for conservation

Antibiotic resistance, commonly known as antimicrobial resistance, is a major global health concern. In Bangladesh, resident wild birds such as the house crow, common myna, and house sparrow can be found near human settlements all year. As a result, these birds could carry fluoroquinolone-resistant Escherichia coli. We collected 134 freshly dropped fecal samples for this study. E. coli was confirmed using morphological characteristics from culture plates as well as PCR. The Antibiogram of the target isolates was determined by a disk diffusion method and the presence of any resistant genes in the isolates was determined by PCR. About 83% of the common wild birds were found positive for E. coli in their fecal samples. In the antibiogram study about 16 to 40% of isolates were found resistant to different fluoroquinolones. Forty-five percent of isolates were found to carry the fluoroquinolone-resistant gene qnrA, whereas the qnrS gene was absent in all the isolates. All of the isolates examined were found to be resistant to ampicillin and ceftazidime. There are no published data on fluoroquinolone-resistant E. coli isolated from common resident wild birds in Bangladesh. Our data imply that house crow, common myna, and house sparrow could be a possible source for the spread of fluoroquinolone-resistant E. coli in the environment. J. of Sci. and Tech. Res. 6(1): 83-88, 2024

The current study was designed to determine the concentrations of toxic metals (Ni, Pb and Cr) in feathers of birds collected from four regions of NE Pakistan. Feather samples of birds (House Crow, Common Myna and House Sparrow) were collected from different areas. Atomic absorption spectrophotometer was used to determine the concentration of metals in feathers. Analysis of the data revealed that concentrations of Pb and Cr were significantly different (p < 0.05) among bird species, whereas no difference (p > 0.05) was detected among bird species (house crow, common myna and house sparrow) for Ni. A significant difference was found for the concentration of Pb and Ni in all the four studied regions. Whereas, non-significant difference was found in all the studied regions for the concentrating of Cr. It was revealed that there is significant rising concentration of metals (Pb, Cr) in feathers of birds in Azad Kashmir.

Introduction of species represents today one of the most important problems of nature conservation. Special attention is paid to alien vascular plants and vertebrates. In the Afrotropical Region (sub-Saharan Africa), however, there is a lack of comprehensive review of alien amphibians and reptiles. The presented paper constitutes an attempt to overview the status, distribution and threats posed by introduced herp species to sub-Saharan Africa since the second half of the 18th century. This review includes 21 amphibian (including 10 established) and 57 reptile (including 33 established) species introduced to sub-Saharan Africa. Most species introduced to sub-Saharan Africa which subsequently developed viable populations originated from the Malagasy (32%), Afrotropical (30%), and Oriental (27%) Regions. Most introductions were made in the last two decades, mostly as results of an increase in international trade and herp pet industry, especially in South Africa. Stowaway and pet trade are the most common pathways of introductions. Several factors determine the successful establishment of introduced alien herp species in sub-Saharan Africa, viz. behavioral and morphological traits, propagule pressure, climate and habitat overlap, and presence of potentially competing species. The impact of alien herps in sub-Saharan Africa on the local biodiversity is not well investigated. In comparison with other continents the number of introduced and established herp species in sub-Saharan Africa is relatively low. The Malagasy Region has the highest number of introduced herp species in sub-Saharan Africa.

Commensal bird species i.e. Rock Pigeon, Common Myna and House Crow were studied in relation to their spatial and temporal assemblages at four locations i.e. location 1 (Rajguru Nagar), location 2 (Agar Nagar), location 3 (Phase-3, Dugri) and location 4 (Punjab Agricultural University) comprising of 12-point sites at each location in urban landscape of Ludhiana city, Punjab. Structural features consisted of maximum build area at location 2 followed by location 1, 3 and 4 whereas vegetation area was highest at location 4 followed by location 3, 1 and 2. Rock Pigeon was most spatially distributed species at all locations followed by Common Myna and House Crow at location 1 and 3; House Crow and Common Myna at location 2 and 4. Rock Pigeon was maximum at point 8 (location 1) due to presence of well-planned housing structure and wide roads, Common Myna was maximum at point 32 (location 3) and House Crow was maximum at point 33 (location3) due to presence of vegetation and modernized housing structures. Temporal variation in three urban commensal bird species was also recorded across four locations which revealed that Rock Pigeon, House Crow and Common Myna showed distinct monthly fluctuations in abundance, with peaks and declines varying by location site. The spatial and temporal distribution of Rock Pigeon, Common Myna and House Crow in Ludhiana observed due to variation in built-up and vegetation areas that collectively shape commensal bird assemblages in urban environments.

Globally, various avian species have been introduced accidentally and deliberately by humans through different pathways. Some of these species were able to establish, multiply, and become invasive. In this study, we identified areas that are climatically suitable for seven introduced invasive bird species and assessed the environmental and socio-economic impacts associated with the selected bird species in South Africa. We used present distribution records to predict potential climatic suitability distributions and used the Generic Impact Scoring Scheme to assess the impacts associated with seven invasive bird species in South Africa. We found that all the seven species were climatically suitable to South Africa and Passer domesticus, Sturnus vulgaris, and Anas platyrhynchos each had relatively large climatic suitability distributions. The climatic suitability for all the species was within their occurrence ranges in and outside South Africa. For impact assessments, we found that all seven selected species had impacts, with A. platyrhynchos, Acridotheres tristis, Columba livia, and Psittacula krameri having the highest overall impacts respectively. The socio-economic impact ranked higher than environmental impact for all species. The socio-economic impacts were frequently through agricultural production and human infrastructure, while the environmental impact was mostly through impacts of birds on other animals and competition. These need to be incorporated in decision-making and eradication plans for these alien invasive birds in South Africa.

Distribution patterns and literature details of 263 Lebiinae species reported from India are provided. List includes 14 species missed out by Andrewes (1930a) and the 98 species described thereafter. Distribution patterns revealed among the 263 species, 104 species are exclusively Oriental species and 35 species are exclusively Palaearctic species. Among the 263 Indian speceis, 130 species are exclusively Indian species with reports only from the Indian subcontinent and one species with report only from Andaman &amp; Nicobar Islands. Of the 130 Indian species, 89 species are recorded from the Oriental, 27 species from the Palaearctic and 14 species recorded from both Oriental and Palaearctic regions in India. Among the 129 Indian subcontinent species, 45 species are endemics to the three global hotspots of the biodiversity in India with 31 species endemic to the Western Ghats and Sri Lanka hotspot of biodiversity; six species endemic to the Eastern Himalayas hotspot of biodiversity; eight species endemic to the Indo-Burma hotspot of biodiversity; four species recorded only from Chota Nagpur plateu and 27 species recorded only from Indian Himalayas. Four species (Microlestes parvati, Singilis indicus, S. squalidus and Lebia cardoni) recorded only from Chota Nagpur plateu and the 31 endemic species from the Western Gahts and Sri Lanka are of special interest for their Gondwana relationships. 133 species have wider geographic distribution pattern with 15 species having distribution in Oriental and Indian regions; 8 species having distribution in Palaeractic and Indian regions; 10 species having distribution in Oriental and Indo-Australian regions; 48 species with distribution in Oriental and Palaearctic regions; 29 species with distribution in Oriental, Indo-Australian and Palaearctic regions; 2 species with distribution in Oriental, Australian and Palaearctic regions; 6 species with distribution in Oriental, Palaearctic and Afrotropical regions; 9 species with distribution in Oriental, Indo-Australian, Australian and Palaearctic regions; and 6 species with random distributions in different regions. Distribution records indicate that the arrival/origin of 228 species- 137 species with wider geographic distribution outside India and the 91 species with Indian distribution and not endemics to the Western Ghats and the Chotanagpur Plateau- is likely to have occurred after the joining of Indian subcontinent with Asian continent and during the subsequent faunal exchange between the newly formed Indian subcontinent and the surrounding regions (Indo-Burma and Indo-China on the north east front; Mediterranean and Ethiopian regions on the north-western front; Central Asian elements on the northern front). These 228 species represent the younger Indian Lebiinae species compared to the 35 species representing the older/ancient species with Gondwana land origin. Key words: Carabidae, Lebiinae, Perigonini, Pentagonicini, Odacanthini, Cyclosomini, Lebiini, India

The interaction between brood parasitic cuckoos and their hosts represents a traditional example of coevolution, whereby obligate interspecific brood parasitic cuckoos completely rely on their hosts to do their parental care for them by laying their eggs in the host’s nest. This thesis brings together a great deal of information documenting and clarifying the interactions between different species of hosts and their respective parasitic cuckoos in Bangladesh. I recorded parasitism rates to determine the extent of brood parasitism and to identify the host species that were parasitised by sympatric cuckoos. Four parasitic cuckoos were documented: the Asian koel ( Eudynamys scolopacea), the common hawk cuckoo (Cuculus varius; previously known as Hierococcyx varius), the pied cuckoo (Clamator jacobinus) and the Indian cuckoo (Cuculus micropterus). These cuckoos were sympatric and parasitised different host species, including the house crow (Corvus splendens), the long-tailed shrike (Lanius schach), the common myna (Acridotheres tristis), the jungle babbler (Turdoides striatus) and the black drongo (Dicrurus macrocercus). All of these cuckoo species are obligate brood parasites. The Asian koel utilised the following three hosts: the house crow, the common myna and the long-tailed shrike. The latter was recorded for the first time as a host for the Asian koel in Bangladesh. We found that koel eggs were highly non-mimetic to those of common myna and long-tailed shrike, but showed good mimicry to house crow eggs. Indian cuckoos showed excellent egg mimicry with the eggs of their black drongo hosts, as did common hawk cuckoos and pied cuckoos with their jungle babbler host. The hosts accepted the eggs of all four cuckoo species. However, the common myna was more likely to abandon nests parasitised by the koel than unparasitised ones. All of the host species suffered the costs of koel parasitism, showing reduced breeding success. Proximity to fruit trees was an important predictor of the probability of parasitism in the three koel host species studied. There was a significant positive relationship between nest volume and probability of parasitism by Asian koels. Furthermore, the colonial breeding house crows suffered comparatively less parasitism than the other two koel host species. Long-tailed shrike nests close to conspecific neighbours were less likely to be parasitised, and the risk of parasitism was increased in nests lower to the ground. The risk of parasitism increased during the breeding season for house crows and common mynas. All three Asian koel hosts tolerated multiple parasitism. We investigated whether there was any interspecific competition among the sympatric cuckoos. In theory, sympatric parasites should show niche segregation through variation in host use. As predicted, each cuckoo species parasitised different host species; however, host use overlapped in common hawk cuckoos and pied cuckoos, but interspecific competition was reduced because these two cuckoo species have different breeding seasons. Furthermore, there was a significant difference in parasitism rate among the three main habitats: human habitations, mixed scrub forests and monoculture plantations. This indicated that different cuckoos favour specific habitats, even if their favourite host also occurs elsewhere. Finally, I tested responses against foreign eggs by the cuckoo hosts as well as by potential cuckoo hosts in the study area. For this purpose, I used differently sized and coloured model eggs. Common mynas and jungle babblers accepted all non-mimetic eggs, as did most of the house crows (91 %). Long-tailed shrikes rejected 75 % of the non-mimetic model eggs. Finally, black drongos turned out to be strong rejectors and could do so without damaging any of their own eggs, most likely because they grasped and ejected the non-mimetic model egg. This result indicates that the black drongo has been in a coevolutionary arms race with the Indian cuckoo since drongos accepted mimetic cuckoo eggs. Species such as the Oriental magpie robin (Copsychus saularis), red-vented bulbul (Pycnonotus cafer) and Asian pied starling (Gracupica contra), which likely have no history of interaction with cuckoos, accepted 100 % of the non-mimetic model eggs. In conclusion, our findings describe host nest use cues used by the Asian koel, which may provide background for further studies in other sympatric brood parasites. In spite of the high degree of acceptance of parasitic eggs, the breeding success of both cuckoos and hosts should be more closely studied to obtain a better understanding of the costs of parasitism. Future experimental studies are highly recommended to achieve a better understanding of host responses to Asian cuckoo species.

The family Chalcedectidae (Hymenoptera: Chalcidoidea) is currently represented by described species in the Australasian, Nearctic, Neotropical and Palaearctic regions. We here extend the distribution of the family to the Afrotropical and Oriental regions with description of 11 new species, which represents a 50% increase in the number of described world species. Chalcedectus tankwa van Noort &amp; Mitroiu, sp. nov., is newly described from the Afrotropical and Palaearctic regions based on both sexes, whereas C. copelandi Gibson &amp; van Noort, sp. nov., is described from the Afrotropical region based on both sexes and provisionally recorded from the Palaearctic region based on males. Also newly described from the Afrotropical region are C. bisculpturatus Gibson, sp. nov. (female), C. mabeabai van Noort, sp. nov. (female), C. madagascarensis Gibson, sp. nov. (both sexes), and C. schroderae van Noort, sp. nov. (both sexes). Newly described from the Oriental region based on both sexes are C. atratus Gibson, sp. nov., C. indraneela Ranjith, sp. nov., C. peculiatergalis Ranjith &amp; Gibson, sp. nov., C. prolixus Gibson, sp. nov., and C. striolatus Gibson, sp. nov. The two species previously described from the Palaearctic, C. balachowskyi Steffan and C. sinaiticus (Masi), are also treated. All species are imaged through macrophotography and keyed separately for the three regions treated. Online Lucid identification keys and images of all the species treated herein are available at: www.waspweb.org.

More than 1982 species in 90 genera were included in an analysis of the biogeography of the Phytoseiidae, a family of predatory mites. Seven biogeographic regions were taken into account: Nearctic, Neotropical, Ethiopian, West Palaearctic, East Palaearctic, Oriental, and Australasian. The number of species was particularly high in the Neotropical, Oriental, and West Palaearctic regions. These regions also present the highest levels of species endemism. The number of genera was quite similar in all regions except for the Neotropics, which also had a high level of endemism. The possible Gondwanian (Neotropical, Ethiopian, Australasian, and Oriental regions) origin of the Phytoseiidae, most probably in the Neotropics, and their possible radiation to Laurasia (Nearctic, West Palaearctic, and East Palaearctic regions) are discussed. The comparison between genera and species in the different biogeographic regions indicate the importance of both dispersal and vicariance events in the evolution of the group. Dispersal is assumed to have been most important between Neotropical and Nearctic regions and between East Palaearctic and Oriental regions, whereas vicariance could have been the dominating process between Australasian, Ethiopian, and Oriental regions, as well as between West and East Palaearctic regions. A parsimony analysis of endemicity showed the Neotropical and the Nearctic regions to be isolated from the other regions. This is certainly due to a diversification after the continents drifted apart and then a high dispersal between Nearctic and Neotropical regions. Different phylogenetic hypotheses and scenarios are proposed for each subfamily based on the results obtained and further investigations are proposed. (C) 2008 The Linnean Society of London.

Testicular Responses of House Sparrows and White-Crowned Sparrows to Short Daily Photoperiods with Low Intensities of Light