English (United Kingdom)

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/featured_content/oa?rat=en

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/highlighted_journal/

Global: Zendy Plus annual

Presents the access of premium content as premium feature

Premium Content

Presents the keyphrase highlighting as premium feature

Keyphrase Highlighting

Presents the summarisation as premium feature

Summarisation

Insights

Presents the pdf analysis as premium feature

PDF Analysis

Presents the zaia usage as premium feature

ZAIA

Global: Zendy Tools annual

Global: Zendy Free Plan

Global: Zendy Tools monthly

Global: Zendy Plus monthly

Infectious diseases threaten the health and survival of wildlife populations. Consequently, relationships between host diversity, host abundance, and parasite infection are important aspects of disease ecology and conservation research. Here, we report on the prevalence patterns of avian  Plasmodium  and  Haemoproteus  infections and host relative abundance influence based on sampling 728 wild-caught birds representing 124 species at seven geographically widespread sites in southern China. The overall prevalence of two haemoprotozoan parasites,  Plasmodium  and  Haemoproteus , was 29.5%, with 22.0% attributable to  Haemoproteus  and 7.8% to  Plasmodium .  Haemoproteus  prevalence differed significantly among different avian host families, with the highest prevalence in Nectariniidae, Pycnonotidae and Muscicapidae, whereas  Plasmodium  prevalence varied significantly among host species. Seventy-nine mitochondrial lineages including 25 from  Plasmodium  and 54 from  Haemoproteus  were identified, 80% of which were described here for the first time. The phylogenetic relationships among these parasites indicated stronger host-species specificity for  Haemoproteus  than  Plasmodium . Well-supported host-family (Timaliidae) specific clades were found in both  Plasmodium  and  Haemoproteus . The  Haemoproteus  tree shows regional subclades, whereas the  Plasmodium  clades are “scattered” among different geographical regions. Interestingly, there were statistically significant variations in the prevalence of  Plasmodium  and  Haemoproteus  among the geographical regions. Furthermore, the prevalence of  Plasmodium  and  Haemoproteus  were not significantly correlated with host relative abundance. Further efforts will focus on exploring the relationships between parasite prevalence and sex, age, and immune defense of the host.

Prevalence Patterns of Avian Plasmodium and Haemoproteus Parasites and the Influence of Host Relative Abundance in Southern China