Abstract
Avian plumage harbors various pathogens such as feather-degrading bacteria, which have the potential to reduce host fitness. A growing body of evidence suggests that the secretion of the uropygial gland of birds—preen oil—acts as one of the first lines of defence against harmful bacteria. However, previous studies on the antimicrobial impact of preen oil have yielded controversial results. The impact of preen oil on bacterial densities of feathers was experimentally investigated in two passerine species: great tits Parus major and pied flycatchers Ficedula hypoleuca. More specifically, we tested whether the antibacterial effect of the preen oil secreted by the same individual differs from that of the preen oil originating from the gland of other species. In the laboratory, ventral feathers were treated with preen oil from (1) an individual’s own gland, (2) from the gland of another passerine species, or (3) from the gland of a phylogenetically distant bird species. We detected a significant antibacterial effect of preen oil on bacteria that were attached to feathers, though the effect did not depend on whether the oil originated from the individual’s own gland or from the gland of another bird species. However, treatment with preen oil suppressed the density of bacteria more in the pied flycatcher than in the great tit. This is the first study providing experimental evidence that preen oil represents an important antimicrobial mechanism against those plumage bacteria that are attached to feathers.
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Acknowledgements
We thank Pauli Saag and Aile Sumberg for their assistance and Tiina Alamäe and Helena Andreson for help in the interpretation of the results. The study was financially supported by the Estonian Research Council (research Grants # IUT34-8 and PUTJD700). MM and JL thank the Estonian Government for continuously keeping up our hopes about raising research funding to 1% of GDP.
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RM, GA and MM conceived the ideas and designed the methodology. GA and MM collected the field samples and performed the laboratory analyses. JL, MM and GA analyzed the data. GA and RM led the writing of the manuscript. MM and JL contributed to the writing of the manuscript.
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Alt, G., Mägi, M., Lodjak, J. et al. Experimental study of the effect of preen oil against feather bacteria in passerine birds. Oecologia 192, 723–733 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-020-04599-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-020-04599-8