Abstract
The study of local variations in abundance and lineage distribution within the same host species is essential in order to understand the virulence and the differences in risk of exposure between individuals. Several studies have investigated factors shaping the abundance and geographical distribution of avian malaria in different continents. However, the vast territories of Asia have received little attention. Moreover, the distribution of haemosporidians remains unknown in many families of birds, for example the Sittidae. Here, we present the first molecular-based study that investigates the infection of haemosporidians in different populations of a bird from Western Asia in order to determine geographical differences in the prevalence and diversity of parasite lineages. We explore the occurrence of haemosporidians infecting Krüpers’ Nuthatch Sitta krueperi in the Anatolian peninsula. Also, we analyse environmental factors predicting variation in parasite abundance. Our results revealed significant differences in abundance and parasite lineage distribution between northern and southern populations. Altitude of sampling sites was associated with the variability in the prevalence of haemosporidians. We also showed a higher diversity of Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon lineages in southern populations. The majority of parasite lineages found had not previously been described.
Zusammenfassung
Geographische Variation Parasitischer Hämosporidien in Türkischen Populationen des Türkenkleibers Sitta krueperi
Eine Untersuchung lokaler Schwankungen in Abundanz und Verbreitung von Parasiten-Abstammungslinien innerhalb derselben Wirtsart ist unentbehrlich, um Virulenz und Unterschiede im Expositionsrisiko zwischen Individuen zu verstehen. Mehrere Studien haben Faktoren untersucht, welche die Abundanz und geographische Verbreitung von Vogelmalaria auf verschiedenen Kontinenten prägen. Den ausgedehnten Gebieten Asiens wurde jedoch wenig Beachtung geschenkt. Darüber hinaus ist die Verbreitung von Hämosporidien in vielen Vogelfamilien wie zum Beispiel den Kleibern (Sittidae) nach wie vor unbekannt. Hier stellen wir die erste molekulare Studie vor, welche die Infektion mit Hämosporidien in verschiedenen Populationen eines westasiatischen Vogels untersucht, um geographische Unterschiede in der Prävalenz und Diversität von Parasiten-Abstammungslinien zu ermitteln. Wir erforschen das Auftreten von Hämosporidien, die Türkenkleiber Sitta krueperi infizieren, in Kleinasien. Wir analysieren außerdem Umweltfaktoren, die Variation in der Parasitenabundanz vorhersagen. Unsere Ergebnisse zeigten signifikante Unterschiede in der Abundanz und Verbreitung von Parasiten-Abstammungslinien zwischen nördlichen und südlichen Populationen. Die Höhenlage der Probenahmegebiete stand mit der Variabilität in der Prävalenz von Hämosporidien in Zusammenhang. Wir zeigten auch eine höhere Diversität von Haemoproteus- und Leucocytozoon-Linien in südlichen Populationen. Der Großteil der gefundenen Parasiten-Abstammungslinien war bislang nicht beschrieben worden.
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Acknowledgments
Metin Balçay kindly helped in the field work. We thank Indrikis Krams and an anonymous referee for their valuable comments on earlier versions of the manuscript. This study was funded by research projects of the Spanish Ministry of Education and Science (CGL2009-08976) and Junta of Extremadura (PRI08A116). All the experiments comply with the current laws of Turkey, where the experiments were performed.
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Communicated by L. Fusani.
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Marzal, A., Albayrak, T. Geographical variation of haemosporidian parasites in Turkish populations of Krüper’s Nuthatch Sitta krueperi. J Ornithol 153, 1225–1231 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-012-0853-z
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10336-012-0853-z