Journal Articles
Permanent URI for this collectionhttps://mro.massey.ac.nz/handle/10179/7915
Browse
2 results
Search Results
Item Health impacts of poor water quality on an endangered shorebird breeding programme in Aotearoa New Zealand.(Taylor and Francis Group, 2024-02-04) Gartrell BD; Hunter S; Collen R; Jolly M; McInnes K; Richardson A; Reed C; Ward R; Pita ACASE HISTORY: Two clusters of mortality among endangered tūturuatu/tchūriwat'/shore plover (Thinornis novaeseelandiae) have occurred at captive breeding facilities around New Zealand in recent years. In the first, four chicks died at Pūkaha National Wildlife Centre (Mount Bruce, NZ) in February 2016, and in the second five adult birds at the Cape Sanctuary (Cape Kidnappers, NZ) died in 2022. CLINICAL FINDINGS: In 2016, four chicks were noted to become weak, have increased vocalisations and closed eyes prior to death. The remaining chicks were treated for 5 days with amoxycillin/clavulanate orally twice daily. Water containers and brooders were cleaned and disinfected with chlorhexidine. No further mortality was seen.In the 2022 cluster, three adult breeding birds died acutely and five others showed inappetence, weight loss and diarrhoea approximately 10 days after heavy rains flooded the local river. The five birds were treated with amoxycillin/clavulanate orally twice daily and oral fluids for 5 days. Two birds died and three survived. No breeding occurred in the aviaries in the following season. PATHOLOGICAL FINDINGS: In 2016, the chicks showed pulmonary changes ranging from congestion and oedema to heterophilic inflammation consistent with septicaemia.In 2022, the adult birds showed proliferation of bacteria in the distal small intestine associated with mucosal ulceration and heterophilic infiltration. Acid-fast staining of the caecal contents in one bird showed organisms consistent with Cryptosporidium spp. LABORATORY FINDINGS: Aerobic bacterial cultures of the lung and liver of two affected chicks carried out in 2016 showed heavy growth of Plesiomonas shigelloides. The same organism was cultured from water trays and holding tanks containing water boatmen (Sigara arguta) on which the chicks were fed.In 2022, cultures from the livers of three dead birds each showed a mixed bacterial growth with differing dominant organisms (Aeromonas sobria, Hafnia alvei, Citrobacter freundii and an Enterococcus sp.). PCR and sequencing confirmed Cryptosporidium parvum in the caecum of one bird. Fresh faeces from 24 breeding birds from the captive breeding facilities were negative by PCR for Cryptosporidium spp.The captive breeding facilities obtain water for the aviaries and aquatic invertebrates to feed to the chicks from local freshwater sources. Water quality testing at the Cape Sanctuary revealed concentrations of faecal indicator bacteria in excess of safe drinking water guidelines, with peaks following heavy rainfall. CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Fluctuations in water quality associated with mammalian faecal bacteria can adversely affect bird health and impact on captive rearing of endangered wildlife.Item Leveraging an existing whole-genome resequencing population data set to characterize toll-like receptor gene diversity in a threatened bird(John Wiley and Sons, Ltd, 2022-10) Magid M; Wold JR; Moraga R; Cubrinovska I; Houston DM; Gartrell BD; Steeves TE; Hohenlohe PASpecies recovery programs are increasingly using genomic data to measure neutral genetic diversity and calculate metrics like relatedness. While these measures can inform conservation management, determining the mechanisms underlying inbreeding depression requires information about functional genes associated with adaptive or maladaptive traits. Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are one family of functional genes, which play a crucial role in recognition of pathogens and activation of the immune system. Previously, these genes have been analysed using species-specific primers and PCR. Here, we leverage an existing short-read reference genome, whole-genome resequencing population data set, and bioinformatic tools to characterize TLR gene diversity in captive and wild tchūriwat'/tūturuatu/shore plover (Thinornis novaeseelandiae), a threatened bird endemic to Aotearoa New Zealand. Our results show that TLR gene diversity in tchūriwat'/tūturuatu is low, and forms two distinct captive and wild genetic clusters. The bioinformatic approach presented here has broad applicability to other threatened species with existing genomic resources in Aotearoa New Zealand and beyond.