Blackbirds and song thrushes constitute a key reservoir of Borrelia garinii, the causative agent of borreliosis in Central Europe.
Blackbirds (Turdus merula) and song thrushes (Turdus philomelos) were found to carry 95% of all spirochete-infected tick larvae among 40 bird species captured in Central Europe. More than 90% of the infections were typed as Borrelia garinii and Borrelia valaisiana. We conclude that thrushes are key players in the maintenance of these spirochete species in this region of Central Europe.
D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D001715:Bird Diseases / Q000382:microbiology*; D001899:Borrelia Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000662:veterinary*; D015748:Borrelia burgdorferi Group / Q000235:genetics*; D018153:Czech Republic / Q000453:epidemiology; D004197:Disease Reservoirs / Q000382:microbiology*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D046109:Passeriformes / Q000382:microbiology* / Q000469:parasitology; D015995:Prevalence; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012307:Risk Factors; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA / Q000662:veterinary; D018154:Slovakia / Q000453:epidemiology; D013987:Ticks / Q000235:genetics / Q000382:microbiology*