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Blood parasites of bird communities in Sri Lanka and their mosquito vectors

  • Protozoology - Original Paper
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Abstract

Avian blood parasites have been shown to have significant health effects on avifauna worldwide. Sri Lanka, a tropical island rich with resident and migratory birds, has not been properly evaluated for avian blood parasites or their vectors. We investigated the presence of avian haemoparasites in Sri Lankan birds and the potential mosquito vectors of those pathogens. Blood samples were collected from local/migratory birds captured by standard mist nets from Anawilundawa bird sanctuary, Hanthana mountain range, and the University of Peradeniya park. Mosquitoes were collected from Halgolla forest reserve and the forest patches in Kurunegala and Gampola areas in addition to the above mist-netting localities. Part of the mitochondrial cytochrome b (cytb) gene was amplified and sequenced to detect the presence of haemoparasites from avian blood samples (86) and mosquito samples (480). Blood parasites of the two genera, i.e., Haemoproteus (4 species; Haemoproteus sp. 1-4) and Plasmodium (5 species; Plasmodium sp. 1-5) were identified from seven bird species (four resident and three migratory). Among these, three bird species (Red-vented bulbul (3/16), Asian Brown flycatcher (1/1), and India pitta (1/1)) were positive for Plasmodium spp., while four (Yellow-browed bulbul (1/4), oriental white-eye (1/4), brown-headed Barbet (1/4), and Indian blue robin (1/1)) were positive for Haemoproteus spp. Two mosquito species were also positive for Plasmodium (3) and Haemoproteus (1) species. Phylogenetic analysis and haplotype networks created using positive sequences of haemoparasites showed that a Plasmodium clade was shared by Cx nigropunctatus mosquitoes and the migratory bird, Indian pitta. The majority (85%) of the Plasmodium and Haemoproteus sequences of this study were not linked to the well-characterized species suggesting the distinct nature of the lineages. Associations between mosquito species and blood parasites of birds suggest the possible vector status of these mosquitoes.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are thankful to Mr. S.L.N. Samarasinghe, Department of Zoology, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka for his assistance in field sampling. The Department of Wildlife Conservation and the Forest Department of Sri Lanka are highly acknowledged for the given permission to collect samples as well as the provided support in the field.

Funding

This work is funded by the National Research Council Grant No 2016-059, Sri Lanka and the University of Peradeniya (Research Grant Number 2016-51/S), Sri Lanka.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Zoology, Faculty of Science, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, Sri Lanka

    W. G. D. Chathuranga, T. C. Weereratne, S. H. P. P. Karunaratne & W. A. Priyanka P. De Silva

  2. Postgraduate Institute of Science, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, Sri Lanka

    W. G. D. Chathuranga

  3. Department of Veterinary Public Health and Pharmacology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine and Animal Science, University of Peradeniya, Peradeniya, Sri Lanka

    B. R. Fernando

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  1. W. G. D. Chathuranga
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  5. W. A. Priyanka P. De Silva
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Contributions

W.A.P.P. de Silva contributed to the conception of the idea, funding acquisition, project design, data collection, analysis and paper writing. W.G.D. Chathuranga contributed to data collection, analysis and paper writing. B.R. Fernando contributed to project designing, data collection, analysis and paper writing. T.C. Weeraratne contributed to project designing, data analysis and paper writing. S.H.P.P. Karunaratne contributed to project designing and paper writing.

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Correspondence to W. A. Priyanka P. De Silva.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed involving animals were in accordance with the ethical standards and the approval was obtained from the ethics committee of Postgraduate Institute of Science University of Peradeniya (approval number: ECC_PGIS_2017_05), Sri Lanka.

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Section Editor: Larissa Howe

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Chathuranga, W.G.D., Fernando, B.R., Weereratne, T.C. et al. Blood parasites of bird communities in Sri Lanka and their mosquito vectors. Parasitol Res 120, 693–703 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-021-07049-3

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