Resident Wild Birds: A Potential Source for Fluoroquinolone-resistant E. coli

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.

Aim : Salmonellosis is one of the most common zoonotic diseases, and the presence of antimicrobial resistant Salmonella in wild birds is global public health threat. Throughout the last decades, multidrug resistance of Salmonella spp. has increased, particularly in developing countries. Therefore, a cross-sectional study was conducted to investigate the prevalence of Salmonella spp. and antimicrobial resistance pattern against Salmonella spp. from two species of resident wild birds namely house crow (Corvus splendens) and Asian pied starling ( Gracupica contra ). Materials and Methods : Samples were collected from cloacal swabs of house crows and Asian pied starling for isolating Salmonella spp. (bacteriological culture methods) followed by antimicrobial susceptibility testing (disk diffusion method) against Salmonella spp. isolates during March to December 2014. Results : The prevalence of Salmonella in Asian pied starling and house crows were 67% and 65%, respectively. Within the category of samples from different species, the variation in prevalence was not varied significantly (p>0.05). Isolated Salmonella spp. was tested for resistance to six different antimicrobial agents. Among six antimicrobial tested, 100% resistance were found to penicillin, oxacillin, and clindamycin followed by erythromycin (50-93%), kanamycin (7-20%), and cephalothin (30-67%) from both species of birds. Kanamycin remained sensitive in (70-73%), cephalothin (26-70%), and erythromycin appeared to be (0-30%) sensitive against Salmonella spp. isolates. Isolated Salmonella spp. was multidrug resistant up to three of the six antimicrobials tested. Conclusion : It can be said that the rational use of antimicrobials needs to be adopted in the treatment of disease for livestock, poultry, and human of Bangladesh to limit the emergence of drug resistance to Salmonella spp.

A survey of gastro-intestinal parasitic infection in domestic and wild birds in Chittagong and Greater Sylhet, Bangladesh

Introduced species may pose one of the biggest threats to biodiversity conservation. Today, monitoring their status, distribution and abundance constitutes an important part of ecological and conservation studies throughout the world. In the Afrotropical Region (sub-Saharan Africa), avian introductions have attracted the attention of many researchers, but there is a lack of a comprehensive review of this subject on a continental scale. The presented paper constitutes an attempt to overview the status, distribution, threats and control measures of birds introduced to sub-Saharan Africa in the last 200 years. This review lists 146 bird species introduced to sub-Saharan Africa. Only 49 (33.6%) of them have developed viable populations and only 7 (4.8%) became invasive species, namely Passer domesticus, Sturnus vulgaris, Acridotheres tristis, Corvus splendens, Columba livia var. domestica, Psittacula krameri and Pycnonotus jocosus. Data on distribution of most introduced species are provided, together with information on the place and year of their first introductions. For Passer domesticus and Columba livia var. domestica, data on population densities are also provided from several southern African towns. The most speciose groups of introduced species were parrots (Psittaciformes), comprising 33.6% (including Psittacidae: 13.7%; and Psittaculidae: 15.1%); Anatidae: 12.3%; Phasianidae: 11.0%; and Passeriformes: 30.1%. Most avian introductions in sub-Saharan Africa took place in Southern Africa (mainly the Cape Town, Durban and Johannesburg areas) and in Madagascar and the surrounding islands (mostly Mauritius, Reunion and Seychelles). Most introduced species which have developed viable populations originate from the Afrotropical, Oriental and Palearctic regions (altogether 78%), with only 2% from the New World. The proportions among the introduced species which have not established viable populations are quite different: 29% from the New World and only 60% from the Afrotropical, Oriental and Palearctic regions. The main factors affecting successful avian introductions and introduction pathways have been identified. A review of the control measures undertaken in sub-Saharan Africa (mainly in small oceanic islands) is outlined for the following species: Passer domesticus, Acridotheres tristis, Corvus splendens, Pycnonotus jocosus, Foudia madagascariensis, Psittacula krameri and Agapornis roseicollis.

Avian influenza viruses (AIV) are of great socioeconomic and health concern, notably in Southeast Asia where highly pathogenic strains, such as highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) H5N1 and other H5 and H7 AIVs, continue to occur. Wild bird migrants are often implicated in the maintenance and spread of AIV. However, little systematic surveillance of wild birds has been conducted in Southeast Asia to evaluate whether the prevalence of AIV in wild birds is higher than in other parts of the world where HPAI outbreaks occur less frequently. Across Bangladesh, we randomly sampled a total of 3585 wild and domestic birds to assess the prevalence of AIV and antibodies against AIV and compared these with prevalence levels found in other endemic and non-endemic countries. Our study showed that both resident and migratory wild birds in Bangladesh do not have a particularly elevated AIV prevalence and AIV sero-prevalence compared to wild birds from regions in the world where H5N1 is not endemic and fewer AIV outbreaks in poultry occur. Like elsewhere, notably wild birds of the orders Anseriformes were identified as the main wild bird reservoir, although we found exceptionally high sero-prevalence in one representative of the order Passeriformes, the house crow (Corvus splendens), importantly living on offal from live bird markets. This finding, together with high sero- and viral prevalence levels of AIV in domestic birds, suggests that wild birds are not at the base of the perpetuation of AIV problems in the local poultry sector, but may easily become victim to AIV spill back from poultry into some species of wild birds, potentially assisting in further spread of the virus.

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.

Highly pathogenic avian influenza H5 viruses have pandemic potential, cause significant economic losses and are of veterinary and public health concerns. This study aimed to investigate the distribution and diversity of hemagglutinin (HA) subtypes of avian influenza virus (AIV) in poultry and wild birds in Bangladesh. We conducted an avian influenza sero-surveillance in wild and domestic birds in wetlands of Chattogram and Sylhet in the winter seasons 2012–2014. We tested serum samples using a competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (c-ELISA), and randomly selected positive serum samples (170 of 942) were tested using hemagglutination inhibition (HI) to detect antibodies against the 16 different HA sero-subtypes. All AIV sero–subtypes except H7, H11, H14 and H15 were identified in the present study, with H5 and H9 dominating over other subtypes, regardless of the bird species. The diversity of HA sero-subtypes within groups ranged from 3 (in household chickens) to 10 (in migratory birds). The prevalence of the H5 sero-subtype was 76.3% (29/38) in nomadic ducks, 71.4% (5/7) in household chicken, 66.7% (24/36) in resident wild birds, 65.9% (27/41) in migratory birds and 61.7% (29/47) in household ducks. Moreover, the H9 sero-subtype was common in migratory birds (56%; 23/41), followed by 38.3% (18/47) in household ducks, 36.8% (14/38) in nomadic ducks, 30.6% (11/66) in resident wild birds and 28.5% (2/7) in household chickens. H1, H4 and H6 sero-subtypes were the most common sero-subtypes (80%; 8/10, 70%; 7/10 and 70%; 7/10, respectively) in migratory birds in 2012, H9 in resident wild birds (83.3%; 5/6) and H2 in nomadic ducks (73.9%; 17/23) in 2013, and the H5 sero-subtype in all types of birds (50% to 100%) in 2014. The present study demonstrates that a high diversity of HA subtypes circulated in diverse bird species in Bangladesh, and this broad range of AIV hosts may increase the probability of AIVs’ reassortment and may enhance the emergence of novel AIV strains. A continued surveillance for AIV at targeted domestic–wild bird interfaces is recommended to understand the ecology and evolution of AIVs.

West Nile virus (WNV) is a zoonotic mosquito-borne flavivirus that is harbored and amplified by wild birds via the enzootic transmission cycle. Wide range of hosts are found to be susceptible to WNV infection including mammals, amphibians and reptiles across the world. Several studies have demonstrated that WNV was present in the Malaysian Orang Asli and captive birds. However, no data are available on the WNV prevalence in wild birds found in Malaysia. Therefore this study was conducted to determine the serological and molecular prevalence of WNV in wild birds in selected areas in the West Coast of Peninsular Malaysia. Two types of wild birds were screened, namely migratory and resident birds in order to explore any possibility of WNV transmission from the migratory birds to the resident birds. Thus, a cross-sectional study was conducted at the migratory birds sanctuary located in Kuala Gula, Perak and Kapar, Selangor by catching 163 migratory birds, and 97 resident birds from Kuala Gula and Parit Buntar, Perak at different time between 2016 and 2017 (Total, n = 260). Blood and oropharyngeal swabs were collected for serological and molecular analysis, respectively. Serum were screened for WNV antibodies using a commercial competitive ELISA (c-ELISA) (ID Screen® West Nile Competition Multi-species ELISA, ID VET, Montpellier, France) and cross-reactivity towards Japanese Encephalitis virus (JEV) was also carried out using the JEV-double antigen sandwich (DAS) ELISA. Oropharyngeal swabs were subjected to one-step RT-PCR to detect WNV RNA, in which positive reactions were subsequently sequenced. WNV seropositive rate of 18.71% (29/155) at 95% CI (0.131 to 0.260) and molecular prevalence of 15.2% (16/105) at 95% CI (0.092 to 0.239) were demonstrated in migratory and resident wild birds found in West Coast Malaysia. Phylogenetic analyses of the 16 WNV isolates found in this study revealed that the local strains have 99% similarity to the strains from South Africa and were clustered under lineage 2. Evidence of WNV infection in resident and migratory birds were demonstrated in this study. As a summary, intervention between migratory birds, resident birds and mosquitoes might cause the introduction and maintenance of WNV in Malaysia, however the assumption could be further proven by studying the infection dynamics in the mosquitoes present in the studied areas.

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.

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 study was conducted to estimate the bird diversity and the risks they confront at Head Trimmu, Distt. Jhang, Punjab, Pakistan. A number of field surveys were managed over 12-months by employing both direct and indirect means during certain hours of a day. The study found a total of 54 species from 15 orders and 31 families. The bird species were classified as residents (64.4%), breeders (8%), migrants (26%), and passage migrants (1.4%). The most frequent species observed during the study were house sparrow, house crow, domestic rock pigeon, ring-necked dove and common myna. Overall, the study revealed a diversified avian community with Shannon-Wiener diversity index of 3.3367. Only two species found near threatened like the Houbara bustard (Chlamydotis undulata)and Alexandrine parakeet (Psittacula eupatria) but the majority of the species are of least concern. The ecological richness of the area is under threat by urban development due to growing human population. So, the major threats to avian species in the study area are habitat degradation, Illegal hunting and lack of awareness. It is suggested to preserve avian diversity by the involvement of government agencies, private groups (WWF, IUCN, BirdLife International) and the general public.

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.

Recently, there have been several reports from different parts of the World on the declining populations of the House Sparrow (Passer domesticus). In order to assess the population of this species in the National Capital Territory of Delhi-India, this study was conducted during June– August in 2007. Twenty-eight Fixed-Radius Point Count stations were established in five habitat types viz. High-density Urban Area, Medium-density Urban Area, Low-density Urban Area, Agriculture Area, and Forested Area, within the study area. The results show that the House Sparrow is still a dominant species in the agriculture area. However, its density is very low in the urban areas as compared to the other co-occurring common bird species viz. Rock Pigeon (Columba livia domestica), House Crow (Corvus splendens) and Common Myna (Acridotheres tristis). As, this study was conducted only over one season, the data is not sufficient to provide a clear picture of the population trend of the House Sparrow. Further studies are therefore required to investigate the relationship of the House Sparrow with other co-occurring common species, and to analyse the data on the type and quality of greenspaces and their relation with the House Sparrow in the study area. A long-term monitoring and conservation programme involving local people may be a good approach for maintaining the population of House Sparrow in the study area.

Extended-spectrum β-lactamases (ESBLs) confer bacterial resistance to critically important antimicrobials, including extended-spectrum cephalosporins (ESCs). Livestock are important reservoirs for the zoonotic food-borne transmission of ESC-resistant enteric bacteria. Our aim is to describe the potential role of migratory and resident wild birds in the epidemiology of ESBL-mediated bacterial resistance on dairy farms. Using mist nets, we sampled wild migratory and resident birds either immediately adjacent to or 600 ft away from free-stall barns on three Ohio dairy farms during the 2014 and 2015 spring migrations. Individual swabs were used to obtain both a cloacal and external surface swab from each bird. Samples were inoculated into MacConkey broth containing cefotaxime then inoculated onto MacConkey agar with cefoxitin, cefepime, or meropenem to identify the blaCMY, blaCTX-M, and carbapenemase phenotypes, respectively. Six hundred twenty-three birds were sampled, 19 (3.0%) of which harbored bacteria with blaCMY and 32 (5.1%) harbored bacteria with blaCTX-M from either their cloacal sample or from their external swab. There was no difference in the prevalence of either gene between migratory and resident birds. Prevalence of blaCMY and blaCTX-M was higher among birds sampled immediately outside the barns compared with those sampled 600 ft away. Our results suggest that wild birds can serve as mechanical and/or biological vectors for Enterobacteriaceae with resistance to ESCs. Birds live in close contact with dairy cows and their feed, therefore, transmission locally between farms is possible. Finding a similar prevalence in migratory and nonmigratory birds suggests the potential for regional and intercontinental movement of these resistance genes via birds.

Urbanisation leads to anthropogenic modifications of natural habitats of bird species. These modifications can cause a change in the community composition of animals, a larger proportion of which would be more adaptable species whereas a smaller proportion would be less adaptable species. The bird species that show a positive response to urbanization and primarily dependent upon human influenced variables for food, habitat, dispersal, etc., are known as full synanthropes or urbanophiles. The objective of present study was to study the adaptability of avifauna towards urbanization through synanthropy. The study was conducted from December 2015 to August 2016, in two sites in Peradeniya, i.e., Hanthana and Gannoruwa, covering three habitat types which represent an urbanization gradient. Two belt transects were laid starting from urban habitat to forest habitat. Statistical analyses were done using MS Office Excel 2010 and PRIMER 7 Software. Bubble plots on abundance and distribution of identified, commonly known urbanophilic species showed a distribution restricted only to forest edge, suburban and urban habitats and their absence in forest core habitat. These urbanophilic bird species included Large-billed Crow (Corvus macrorhynchos), House Crow (Corvus splendens), Common Myna (Acrido theres tristis), Yellow-billed Babbler (Turdoides affinis), Rock Pigeon (Columba livia), House Sparrow (Passer domesticus), Oriental Magpie Robin (Copsychus saularis), Pale-billed Flower pecker (Dicaeum erythrorhynchos), Purple-rumped Sunbird (Leptocoma zeylonica), and Long Billed Sunbird (Cinnyris lotenius). The proportion of urbanophilic individuals were 55.29%, 81.70%, 51.97% and 66.81% in Hanthana-suburban, Hanthana-urban, Gannoruwa-suburban and Gannoruwa-urban habitats respectively. These species were observed feeding on human influenced food variables in garbage dumping areas, bird feeders, ornamental or cultivated plants, etc. Most of the identified urbanophiles in this study were omnivorous, grainivorous, insectivorous or nectarivorous species. Furthermore, species that exclusively feed on seeds such as the Rock Pigeon were present only in urban habitats. Apart from feeding, they were using human-made structures and trees in parks in urban matrix for perching and sometimes for nesting as well. However, urbanization favors habitat generalists and it suppresses habitat specialists; hence omnivores are more abundant in modified habitats. Food provided by humans has a major impact on bird community. These urbanophiles tend to be opportunistic feeders according to food availability and hence they tend to exploit new food sources. As a result, availability of food and habitats in urbanized environments strongly favor few ground-feeding or omnivorous bird species such as House Crow and Common Myna.Keywords: Urbanisation, Syananthropy, Adaptability, Resources, Opportunistic