title: High rates of infection by blood parasites during the nestling phase in UK Columbids with notes on ecological associations.
abstract: Studies of blood parasite infection in nestling birds rarely find a high prevalence of infection. This is likely due to a combination of short nestling periods (limiting the age at which nestlings can be sampled) and long parasite prepatent periods before gametocytes can be detected in peripheral blood. Here we examine rates of blood parasite infection in nestlings from three Columbid species in the UK. We use this system to address two key hypotheses in the epidemiology of avian haemoparasites: first, that nestlings in open nests have a higher prevalence of infection; and second, that nestlings sampled at 14 days old have a higher apparent infection rate than those sampled at 7 days old. Open-nesting individuals had a 54% infection rate compared with 25% for box-nesters, probably due to an increased exposure of open-nesting species to dipteran vectors. Nestlings sampled at 14 days had a 68% infection rate compared with 32% in nestlings sampled at 7 days, suggesting that rates of infection in the nest are high. Further work should examine nestlings post-fledging to identify rates of successful parasite infection (as opposed to abortive development within a dead-end host) as well as impacts on host post-fledging survival and behaviour.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Conservation Science,RSPB, The Lodge,Potton Road,Sandy,Bedfordshire SG19 2DL,UK.
authors.forename: Jenny C
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-6277-2781
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Dunn
authors.affiliation: School of Biology, Irene Manton Building, University of Leeds,Leeds LS2 9JT,UK.
authors.forename: Jennifer E
authors.initials: JE
authors.lastname: Stockdale
authors.affiliation: Cardiff School of Biosciences, The Sir Martin Evans Building,Museum Avenue,Cardiff CF10 3AX,UK.
authors.forename: Emma L
authors.initials: EL
authors.lastname: Bradford
authors.affiliation: Cardiff School of Biosciences, The Sir Martin Evans Building,Museum Avenue,Cardiff CF10 3AX,UK.
authors.forename: Alexandra
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: McCubbin
authors.affiliation: Centre for Conservation Science,RSPB, The Lodge,Potton Road,Sandy,Bedfordshire SG19 2DL,UK.
authors.forename: Antony J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Morris
authors.affiliation: Natural England,Suite D,Unex House,Bourges Boulevard,Peterborough PE1 1NG,UK.
authors.forename: Philip V
authors.initials: PV
authors.lastname: Grice
authors.affiliation: School of Biology, Irene Manton Building, University of Leeds,Leeds LS2 9JT,UK.
authors.forename: Simon J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Goodman
authors.affiliation: School of Biology, Irene Manton Building, University of Leeds,Leeds LS2 9JT,UK.
authors.forename: Keith C
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Hamer
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016782:Apicomplexa / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D001715:Bird Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000469:parasitology; D010856:Columbidae / Q000469:parasitology* / Q000502:physiology; D004463:Ecology; D005260:Female; D016787:Haemosporida / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D008297:Male; D009425:Nesting Behavior; D018512:Parasitemia / Q000662:veterinary; D010961:Plasmodium / Q000235:genetics / Q000302:isolation & purification; D011529:Protozoan Infections, Animal / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000469:parasitology; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA / Q000662:veterinary; D006113:United Kingdom / Q000453:epidemiology
keywords: 
                 Haemoproteus
              ; 
                 Leucocytozoon
              ; Haemoparasite; PCR; nesting ecology; parasite