Antibody Prevalence and Isolation of Viable Toxoplasma gondii from Raptors in the Southeastern USA

J Wildl Dis. 2016 Jul;52(3):653-6. doi: 10.7589/2015-10-269. Epub 2016 May 31.

Abstract

Raptors are good indicators of the prevalence of Toxoplasma gondii in the environment because they prey on small mammals and birds. These prey species are a major source of infection in domestic cats ( Felis catus ), which shed the environmentally resistant oocysts. We assessed T. gondii infection in 281 opportunistically available raptors at a rehabilitation facility between 2012 and 2014. Antibodies to T. gondii were assayed by a modified agglutination test (cutoff 1:25) and found in serum of 22/71 Red-tailed Hawks ( Buteo jamaicensis ), 25/54 Barred Owls ( Strix varia ), 9/41 Red-shouldered Hawks ( Buteo lineatus ), 13/28 Great Horned Owls ( Bubo virginianus ), 6/20 Broad-winged Hawks ( Buteo platypterus ), 2/16 Eastern Screech Owls (Megascops asio), 12/13 Bald Eagles ( Haliaeetus leucocephalus ), 6/12 Cooper's Hawks ( Accipiter cooperii ), 1/8 Black Vultures ( Coragyps atratus ), and 1/1 Golden Eagle ( Aquila chrysaetos ). Antibodies were not detected in 5 Barn Owls ( Tyto alba ), 3 American Kestrels ( Falco sparverius ), 1 Mississippi Kite ( Ictinia mississippiensis ), and 1 Osprey ( Pandion haliaetus ). Viable T. gondii was isolated from the tissues of 1 antibody-positive Barred Owl and identified as a strain having type II alleles at all 10 loci tested, except one (ToxoDB polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism genotype 3). Type II strain is the most common strain in the US. Results of this study indicate a high prevalence of T. gondii in some raptor species and the first reported genotyping from a Barred Owl.

Keywords: Genotype; Toxoplasma gondii; isolation; raptor; serology; type II.

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Antibodies, Protozoan / blood*
  • Bird Diseases / epidemiology
  • Bird Diseases / parasitology*
  • Prevalence
  • Raptors / blood*
  • Seroepidemiologic Studies
  • Southeastern United States / epidemiology
  • Toxoplasma*
  • Toxoplasmosis, Animal / blood*
  • Toxoplasmosis, Animal / epidemiology

Substances

  • Antibodies, Protozoan