Completeness of seasonal molting in passerine birds (Aves,Passeriformes) in Northwestern Siberia

This paper considers the variability of the completeness of seasonal molting in passerine birds of the forest tundra and tundra areas of Western Siberia. All variants of passerine birds of North Eurasia known for molting—from complete postjuvenile molting at hatching places to its absence and complete postjuvenile molting at wintering places or at migratory routes, from complete prebreeding molting at wintering places to its absence, and from complete postbreeding molting at nesting places to complete molting at wintering places or at migratory routes—are shown. The factors affecting the completeness of molting are discussed—the properties of adaptation to the subarctic region, length of the migratory route, and photoperiodic conditions during molting. The completeness of molting is most significantly affected by the duration of daylight.     

The first find of the feather mite from Apionacaridae family (Astigmata: Analgoidea) on the passerines ( Passeriformes)

A representative of the family Apionacaridae is recorded from the passerine birds Passeriformes for the first time. Fringillosphaera bochkovi gen. n., sp. n. is described from the chaffinch Fringilla coelebs (Fringillidae). The new genus obtains main diagnostic characters as follows. Vertical setae vi absent. Prodorsal shield free from scapular sheilds and epimerites Ia. Humeral sheilds present. Epimerites I convergent, connected by sclerotized plate. Lateral setae f2 and pseudanal setae ps3 absent. Coxal fields I-IV sclerotized. In male: legs IV present, genital apparatus at level of trochanters IV, genital arch with divergent branches. Epiandrium absent. Coxal setae 3a absent. Morphological peculiarities, host associations and phylogenetic relationships of the family Apionacaridae are briefly discussed. It is suggested that this family represents and ancient and relic phylogenetic branch, which had split rather early from the common ancestor of the superfamily Analgoidea in the period of formation of the Neognathae birds.     

The fauna and abundance of chewing lice (Insecta,Phthiraptera) parasitizing sedentary passerine birds (Aves,Passeriformes) in Yakutia

Data on the fauna, abundance and prevalence of chewing lice collected from 360 specimens of 13 sedentary species of passerine birds in Yakutia are given. A total of 3206 specimens of chewing lice belonging to 27 species of 6 genera were collected. Most of the studied bird species were infested with several chewing lice species. Exchange of parasites may take place between some bird species in the study region.     

Parasite fauna of the water vole (Arvicola terrestris) and its nests in the south of Western Siberia

Fauna of parasitic and free-living arthropods associated the water vole Arvicola terestris and its nests in various landscape zones and subzones of the south of Western Siberia has been studied. Total abundance of gamasid mites and ticks (Gamasoidea, Ixodidae), fleas and nidicolous arthropods in nests is high, and the set of nidicolous and parasite species is quite diverse, but everywhere the parasite fauna is characterized by a small amount of species reaching a high abundance: Laelaps muris on the voles, Haemogamasus ambulans in nests, Ixodes apronophorus and Megpbotris walkeri both on the voles and nests. Parasitic arthropods living on the voles or in their nests are characterized by higher and stables indices of infection, while these parameters for free-living arthropods were variable. The list of mesostigmatic mites parasitizing the water vole and its nests in the south of Western Siberia (Adamovich, Krylov, 2001) has been considerably supplemented. In total, the fauna of parsitiform mites (Acari: Mesostigmata and Ixodiddes) and fleas (Siphonaptera) associated with the water vole in the south of Western Siberia is represented by 97 arthropod species of 19 families, including 74 species of mesostigmatic mites (Gamasoidea), 6 species of ticks (Ixodidae) and 17 species of fleas.     

Four new feather mite species of the genus Proctophyllodes Robin(Astigmata:Proctophyllodidae) from China

Four new species of the feather mite genus Proctophyllodes are described from the birds of the order Passeriformes in China:P.flexuosa sp.nov.from Eophona migratoria Hartert(Chongqing),P.brevis sp.nov.from Passer montanus(Linnaeus)(Anhui and Chongqing),P.garrula sp.nov.from Garrulax poecilorhynchus Gould(Anhui),P.canora sp.nov.from Garrulax canorus(Linnaeus)(Guizhou).     

Seasonal dynamics of population of the feather mite Monojoubertia microphylla (Astigmata: Analgoidea: Proctophyllodidae) in the chaffinch Fringilla coelebs

The seasonal dynamics of the Monojoubertia microphylla micropopulations in different sex and age groups of the chaffinch Fringilla coelebs (Passeriformes: Fringillidae) have been studied during the nest and migration periods in the North-West of Russia. Three bird groups were determined within the chaffinch population during the study: adult males, adult females, immature chaffinches. Total number of bird specimens examined--353. In all chaffinch groups, the mean mite numbers and age structure of mite micropopulations were similar during the spring migration. The number of mites gradually increased from April to May. During the nest and autumn migration periods the seasonal dynamics of M. microphylla micropopulations were quite different on adult males and females of the chaffinch, because of different roles of male and female in the process of infestation the young bird generation. On the adult chaffinch males, the mite number continued to increase during the breeding period (June) and began to decrease significantly in July because of the postbreeding plumage moult. The mite number slowly decreased in the end of summer and the autumn migration. On the adult chaffinch females, the mite number decreased abruptly during the nest period. During this period, the chaffinch female sits together with nestlings for a long time, and the great number of its mites (about 60% of mite micropopulation) moves from the female onto the nestlings. The mite micropopulation migrated onto nestling is represented mainly by males, females (about 25% each) and tritonymphs (38%). Total mite number on the chaffinch females continued to decrease in July under the influence of postbreeding moult and slightly increased up to the autumn migration only. On the young chaffinches, the number of M. microphylla quickly increased during the second part of summer. It is the result of the great quota of mite instars being ready for the reproduction (imago, tritonymphs) within the micropopulation migrated from the chaffinch female onto the nestlings. The decrease of the M. microphylla micropopulation on the young birds was observed in the autumn only. In the end autumn migration (October), the mean numbers of mites on all chaffinch groups became approximately similar, but did not reach the mean rate observed in the beginning of the spring migration. During both migration periods, the imago and all preimaginal instars of M. microphylla were active, the diapause was not observed. In the beginning of spring migration and the end of autumn migration the main part of the mite micropopulations was represented by females, while in all other periods of chaffinch's stay in the North-West of Russia the immature instars predominated.     

Experimental study of the effect of preen oil against feather bacteria in passerine birds

Avian plumage harbors various pathogens such as feather-degrading bacteria, which have the potential to reduce host fitness. A growing body of evidence suggests that the secretion of the uropygial gland of birds—preen oil—acts as one of the first lines of defence against harmful bacteria. However, previous studies on the antimicrobial impact of preen oil have yielded controversial results. The impact of preen oil on bacterial densities of feathers was experimentally investigated in two passerine species: great tits Parus major and pied flycatchers Ficedula hypoleuca. More specifically, we tested whether the antibacterial effect of the preen oil secreted by the same individual differs from that of the preen oil originating from the gland of other species. In the laboratory, ventral feathers were treated with preen oil from (1) an individual’s own gland, (2) from the gland of another passerine species, or (3) from the gland of a phylogenetically distant bird species. We detected a significant antibacterial effect of preen oil on bacteria that were attached to feathers, though the effect did not depend on whether the oil originated from the individual’s own gland or from the gland of another bird species. However, treatment with preen oil suppressed the density of bacteria more in the pied flycatcher than in the great tit. This is the first study providing experimental evidence that preen oil represents an important antimicrobial mechanism against those plumage bacteria that are attached to feathers.     

The pterolichoid feather mites (Acarina, Astigmata) of the Megapodiidae (Aves, Galliformes)

The pterolichoid feather mites of megapodes are reviewed. Named taxa are briefly discussed and most are figured. The Pterolichidae (Pterolichinae) are: Ascetohchus Perez & Atyeo, three species; Echinozonus Atyeo & Perez, six species; Pereziella Atyeo, two species; and Phycoferus Atyeo & Perez, two species. New pterolichine taxa, with the type species listed first, include: Botryaspis cordiforma gen. et sp.n. and B. cordata gen. et sp.n.; Cycloprotarsus lineatus gen. et sp.n., C. centralis gen. et sp.n. and C. monacrotrichus gen. et sp.n.; Eurypterolichus gen.n. for Pterolichus navicula comb.n. Trouessart & Neumann and E. coniger gen. et sp.n.; Goniodurus gen.n. for Pterolichus ( Pseudalloptes ) quadratus comb.n. Trouessart and G. bilobatus gen. et sp.n.; Haptepigynus gen.n. for Pterolichus ( Pseudalloptes ) tridentiger comb.n. Trouessart and H. holonotus gen. et sp.n.; Heliaspis ventralis gen. et sp.n.; Leipobius ocellatus gen. et sp.n.; Maleolichus maleo gen. et sp.n.; Mayracarus gen.n. for Pterolichus (P.) tritilobus comb.n. Trouessart; Megapodobius arcuatus gen. et sp.n. and M. striatus gen. et sp.n.; Oxygynurus brevissimus gen. et sp.n., O. longicaulis gen. et sp.n., O. mediocaulis gen. et sp.n. and O. parvicaulis gen. et sp. n.; Prionoturus amembranatus gen. et sp. n.; Talegallobius bidentatus gen. et sp.n.; and Tanysomacarus imperfectus gen. et sp.n. and T. brachymeles gen. et sp.n. A new taxon of the Thoracosathesidae is: Thoracosathes caudiculata sp.n. Keys are provided and host- commensal associations are discussed. All taxa are restricted to the Megapodiidae. Cheylabis fuscina Trouessart is assigned to Pereziella and has as a synonym P. dupilcata Atyeo.     

An annotated check-list of Aphidiid-wasp fauna (Hymenoptera,Aphidiidae) of Western Siberia

93 species of 20 genera of the family Aphidiidae were found in Western Siberia and in the neighboring Sverdlovsk, Chelyabinsk, and Orenburg provinces. 24 species were recorded from Russia for the first time.     

Spermiophagy in the male reproductive tract of some passerine birds

In order to elucidate the locus and means of spermiophagy in passerine birds, we examined histologically the entire male reproductive tract of sexually mature birds of three passerine species with different forms of sperm competition, namely, the alpine accentor (Prunella collaris), the redflanked bush robin (Tarsiger cyanurus), and the Bengalese finch (Lonchura striata var. domestica). Spermiophagy occurred consistently and frequently in the epithelial layer of the seminal glomera and ejaculatory duct in each species, which were regularly identified by non-ciliated epithelial cells. The epithelial spermiophagy was occasional or infrequent in other portions of the seminal tract, and spermiophagy by macrophages was uncommon throughout the tract. Quantitative data in the seminal glomera and ejaculatory duct gave no clear answer concerning a possible relationship between the epithelial spermiophagy and different levels of sperm competition among these passerine species. In conclusion, the epithelial lining of the terminal region of the seminal tract is the main site for spermiophagy in the male reproductive tract of these passerine species, which activity serves to maintain the quality of semen by eliminating infertile spermatozoa as well as sperm remaining at the end of the breeding season.     

Fine‐tuned distribution of feather mites (Astigmata) on the wing of birds: the case of blackcaps Sylvia atricapilla

The distribution of feather mites (Astigmata) along the wing of passerine birds could change dramatically within minutes because of the rapid movement of mites between feathers. However, no rigorous study has answered how fine‐tuned is the pattern of distribution of feather mites at a given time. Here we present a multiscale study of the distribution of feather mites on the wing of non‐moulting blackcaps Sylvia atricapilla in a short time period and at a single locality. We found that the number and distribution of mites differed among birds, but it was extremely similar between the wings of each bird. Moreover, mites consistently avoided the first secondary feather, despite that it is placed at the centre of the feathers most used by them. Thus, our results suggest that feather mites do precise, feather‐level decisions on where to live, contradicting the current view that mites perform “mass”, or “blind” movements across wing feathers. Moreover, our findings indicate that “rare” distributions are not spurious data or sampling errors, but each distribution of mites on the wing of each bird is the outcome of the particular conditions operating on each ambient‐bird‐feather mite system at a given time. This study indicates that we need to focus on the distribution of feather mites at the level of the individual bird and at the feather level to improve our understanding of the spatial ecology of mites on the wings of birds.     

New feather mite taxa of the Rhytidelasma Gaud, 1966 generic group (Astigmata: Pterolichidae) from the red-flanked lorikeet Charmosyna placentis placentis (Psittacidae)

Two new genera and species related to Rhytidelasma Gaud, 1966 and Lorilichus Atyeo & Gaud, 1991 are described from the plumage of the red-flanked Lorikeet Charmosyna placentis placentis (Temminck) (Psittacidae). These are Ceratolichus mirabilis n. g., n. sp. and Charmosylichus anamphiestos n. g., n. sp. In addition, an improved diagnosis of Lorilichus is proposed and two new species of this genus are described from the red-flanked lorikeet, L. longiphallos n. sp. and L. paralobiger n. sp.     

Systematic affinities of the lyrebirds (Passeriformes: Menura), with a novel classification of the major groups of passerine birds

Phylogenetic relationships of the lyrebirds are investigated using DNA sequence data. The aligned data matrix consists of 4027 bp obtained from three nuclear genes (c-myc, RAG-1 and myoglobin intron II) and two mitochondrial genes (cytochrome b and ND2). Both maximum-likelihood and parsimony analyses show that the lyrebirds unambiguously belong to the oscine radiation, and that they are the sister taxon to all other oscines. The results do not support the suggestion based on DNA-DNA hybridization data (Sibley and Ahlquist, 1990) that the treecreepers and bowerbirds are part of the lyrebird clade. Nevertheless, treecreepers and bowerbirds are sister taxa to all other oscines (except the lyrebirds) and may constitute a monophyletic group, although bootstrap support values for this clade are low. A major disagreement between the present analysis and that based on DNA-DNA hybridization data is that the Corvida (sensu Sibley and Ahlquist, 1990) and Passerida are not reciprocally monophyletic, as we find the latter group be nested within the Corvida. Also, the superfamilies Meliphagoidea and Corvoidea sensu, are not recovered as monophyletic in the present study. Within the oscine radiation, all taxa belonging to the earliest splits are confined to the Australo-Papuan region. This suggests strongly that the origins and early radiation of the oscines occurred in the southern supercontinent Gondwana. A new classification of the major groups of passerines is presented following from the results presented in the present study, as well as those published recently on analyses of sequence data from the nuclear c-myc and RAG-1 genes (Ericson et al., 2002; Irestedt et al., 2001).     

The anatomy of the syrinx in passerine birds

The macroscopical structure of the organ of voice in songbirds has long been known, but detailed information on the microscopical anatomy of the syrinx has generally been lacking. Observations based largely on macroscopical evidence have led to a number of erroneous interpretations of function of various syringeal components, and lacking microscopical information, the vocal mechanism of birds cannot be adequately understood.
A wide variety of passeriform bird syrinxes have been studied by means of serial sections. Although there is much less variation in syringeal anatomy amongst songbirds than there is in the other orders of birds, and although all songbird syrinxes conform to the same basic pattern, there is nevertheless marked variation in various syringeal components between different passerine groups. Variations in syringeal structure within families Corvidae ( Corvus corone, C. frugilegus ), Sturnidae ( Sturnus vulgaris, Gracula religiosa ), Turdidae ( Turdus merula, Erithacus rubecula ), Hirundinidae ( Delichon urbica ), Ploceidae ( Passer domesticus ) and Paridae ( Parus major, Aegithalos caudatus ) are described and discussed. The significance of these findings in relation to bird sound production is discussed.     

Formation of passerine (Passeriformes) vocalization in ontogeny: the current state of the problem

It the acoustic signal system of birds, songs and calls are distinguished. Up to the late 1970s, the attention of researchers was focused primarily on studying the process of song formation; the patterns of the call system formation remained virtually unstudied. In this field, the prevailing notion was that, since all calls are hereditary, their formation in the repertoire of all birds is similar. This notion was based on non-passerine birds, for which calls constitute most of the vocal communication. Most calls can, indeed, be formed without learning, even in nestlings raised in isolation. Yet some calls remain and are transferred in populations only through learning. The stages of sound repertoire development reflect crucial reorganizations of the acoustic behaviour of nestlings and are distinctly recognizable in most of the studied birds. The first three stages coincide with the periods of postnatal development of altricial birds distinguished by researchers from other fields (based on morphological, behavioural, and physiological characters). These are the early nestling, later nestling, and post-nestling periods. Two more periods may, however, be distinguished in the formation of vocalization: the fourth, confined to the period of hormonal reorganization of the organism during the autumn moult, and the fifth, coinciding with the beginning of the first reproductive cycle of the young bird. The formation of calls in representatives of different systematic groups (to families inclusive) can follow three principal paths: independent, successive, or explosive. Data on the development of the specific repertoire of acoustic signals in ontogeny can serve as a reliable taxonomic criterion, assisting in reconstructing and specifying phylogenetic relationships between different bird lineages.     

Ecology and epizootology of Microsporidia in malarial mosquitoes (diptera: culicidae) from the south of Western Siberia

The ecology and epizootology of Microsporidia were studied in the natural population of malarial mosquitoes from Western Siberia over a 30-year period. Symptoms of the disease, host specificity and character of parasite localization in host tissues were investigated. Microsporidia of 9 species from 4 genera, namely Amblyospora, Crepidulospora, Senoma, and Parathelohania, were found in the malarial mosquito larvae from the territory examined. The mosquito species Anopheles messeae was infested by larger number of the microsporidian species, than A. beklemishevi. Spores and active stages of the microsporidian Senoma sp. from mosquito larvae are localized in epithelial cells of the host's intestine. There are no external signs of the infestation. The infested larvae do not die, and the infection proceeds to the pupal stage. Microsporidians of the genus Parathelohania infest larvae of both male and female mosquitoes. The parasites localized in the fat body cells. Body of the infested host gets an opaque white color in the period of spore maturation. The infested larvae perish at 4th stage. Microsporidian spores are formed in the mosquito larvae of both sexes. However, infection rate is much higher in the male larvae (77.8%), than that in the female larvae (22.2%). Symptoms of the disease under the infestation by the genera Crepidulospora and Amblyospora are similar to those under the infestation by Parathelohania sp. There are no external signs of the infestation in the adult mosquito females. In these hosts microsporidians form large two-nuclear spores with a thin capsule accounted for transovarial transmission. An about two times decrease of fertility in the Anopheles messeae females infested by the Parathelohania microsporidians is revealed. Mean number of eggs laid by the infested females was 121, while that of the noninfested ones was 232. Thus, the cause of the decrease in the mosquito abundance is both the elimination of male larvae and the decrease of fertility in females. In Siberia malarial mosquitoes yield 2 or 3 generations per year. Infested larvae are rarely occurred in the beginning of summer. Maximal extensiveness of the invasion may be observed in the end of summer, because of the accumulation of the infection in water bodies. Number of the peaks of infestation coincides with the peaks of abundance of mosquito larvae of 4th stage. Peaks of infestation are delayed as compared with the peaks of mosquito abundance. It is an evidence of the development delay in the infested larvae. Long-term dynamics of the infestation by microsporidians is studied. The epizooty caused by Parathelohania was observed in the malarial mosquitoes in the eighties (with the infestation rate up to 62 %). In the last ten years the infestation rate was low (from 0.1 to 2.6%).     

On the fauna and ecology of mosquitoes (Diptera: Culicidae) in forest-steppe and steppe regions of Western Siberia

Fauna and ecology of the mosquitoes from the southern forest-steppe (Chany Lake) and the northern steppe (Karasuksky lakes) have been investigated during 2004-2006. Species composition, dominant species, biotopical and seasonal distribution are examined. Detailed data on the biotopical and seasonal distribution, sex ratio and terms of development for the dominant species Coquillettidia richiardii (Ficalbi, 1889) are reported.