Doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.13157/arla.61.1.2014.135
Authors: M. Ángeles ROJO, Francisco CAMPOS, Tomás SANTAMARÍA and M. Ángeles HERNÁNDEZ
E-mail: marojo@uemc.es
Published: Volume 61.1, June 2014. Pages 135-143.
Language: English
Summary:
Haemosporidian infection
(Plasmodium spp., Haemoproteus spp. and Leucocytozoon spp.) was
analysed in 101 bluethroats Luscinia svecica
captured in the Iberian
Central Range
during the 2007 and 2008 breeding seasons. Of them, 58.4% were infected with
single infections of haemosporidians distributed between Plasmodium. spp.(42.9%),
Haemoproteus spp.(30.3%) and Leucocytozoon spp. (14.3%). A smaller percentage
harboured double infections (12.5%): in these double infections, three birds
were found to be infected with Haemoproteus
spp.-Haemoproteus spp., two
with Haemoproteus spp.-Plasmodium
spp.and two with Leucocytozoon spp.-Plasmodium spp. Twentyseven different mitochondrial
DNA haplotypes of malaria parasites were found: a) eight belonging to Plasmodiumspp., two of which (P-SGS1 and P-WW3) have previously been recorded in
bluethroats in Sweden, and one which has been identified in this study for the
first time (P-LSV10); b) thirteen belonging to Haemoproteus spp., four of which (WW2, EMSPO03, RW1, and
ARW1) have previously been recorded in birds with migratory habits and nine
which are described for the first time in this study (H-LSV01 – H-LSV09); and
c) six haplotypes of Leucocytozoon spp., of which one (LeucocytozoonlBT2) has previously been recorded in bluethroats in
Sweden and another is described for the first time in this study (L-LSV11). Our
results show that body condition did not differ between infected and uninfected
birds.
