Antimicrobial Activity and Genetic Profile of Enteroccoci Isolated from Hoopoes Uropygial Gland

Symbiotic microorganisms may be directly transferred from parents to offspring or acquired from a particular environment that animals may be able to select. If benefits for hosts vary among microbial strains, natural selection may favour hosts holding the most beneficial one. Enterococci symbionts living in the hoopoe (Upupa epops) uropygial gland are able to synthesise bacteriocins (antimicrobial peptides that inhibit the growth of competitor bacteria). We explored variability in genetic profile (through RAPD-PCR analyses) and antimicrobial properties (by performing antagonistic tests against ten bacterial indicator strains) of the different isolates obtained from the uropygial glands of hoopoe females and nestlings. We found that the genetic profile of bacterial isolates was related to antimicrobial activity, as well as to individual host identity and the nest from which samples were obtained. This association suggest that variation in the inhibitory capacity of Enterococci symbionts should be under selection.This work was financed by Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (Spanish National Government) and FEDER founds (projects CGL2010-19233-C03-01, and CGL2010-19233-C03-03), and Junta de Andalucía (P09-RNM-4557)

The Hoopoe's Uropygial Gland Hosts a Bacterial Community Influenced by the Living Conditions of the Bird

Molecular methods have revealed that symbiotic systems involving bacteria are mostly based on whole bacterial communities. Bacterial diversity in hoopoe uropygial gland secretion is known to be mainly composed of certain strains of enterococci, but this conclusion is based solely on culture-dependent techniques. This study, by using culture-independent techniques (based on the 16S rDNA and the ribosomal intergenic spacer region) shows that the bacterial community in the uropygial gland secretion is more complex than previously thought and its composition is affected by the living conditions of the bird. Besides the known enterococci, the uropygial gland hosts other facultative anaerobic species and several obligated anaerobic species (mostly clostridia). The bacterial assemblage of this community was largely invariable among study individuals, although differences were detected between captive and wild female hoopoes, with some strains showing significantly higher prevalence in wild birds. These results alter previous views on the hoopoe-bacteria symbiosis and open a new window to further explore this system, delving into the possible sources of symbiotic bacteria (e.g. nest environments, digestive tract, winter quarters) or the possible functions of different bacterial groups in different contexts of parasitism or predation of their hoopoe host.This work was supported by the Ministerio de Ciencia y Tecnología (projects CGL2005-06975/BOSFEDER; CGL2007-61251/BOSFEDER), the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (projects CGL2009-14006/BOSFEDER; CGL2010-19233-C03-01/BOSFEDER; CGL2010-19233-C03-03/BOSFEDER), the Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (projects CGL2013-48193-C3-1-P/BOSFEDER; CGL2013-48193-C3-2-P/BOSFEDER), and the Junta de Andalucía (RNM 345, P09-RNM-4557). SMRR received a grant from the Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (FPI program, BES-2011-047677)

Long-term decline in Common Swift Apus apus annual breeding success may be related to weather conditions

We analyzed the effect of average monthly temperatures and precipitations (May-July) and of the North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO) on the breeding success of the Common Swift (Apus apus) in Třeboň (South Bohemia) from 1980-1997. Breeding success consistently declined during the observation period. We found that precipitations in May and temperatures in June were positively, and the previous year's May NAO was negatively associated with the percentage of nests that failed to produce any offspring. We found opposite associations between these climatic factors and the average production in nests that did produce offspring. Our results thus suggest that climate (change) may have negatively affected the output of the breeding population. Some of our associations between breeding performance and climate contradict previous observations. Hence, the association between climatic conditions and breeding success in Swift remains not fully explored, and additional long-term studies are needed to clarify the effects of abiotic factors on swift reproduction

Comparison of spring and summer clutches of Great Crested Grebes (Podiceps cristatus)

Rajchard, Josef, Navrátil, Josef, Frazier, Ryan J., Ježková, Eva, Marková, Kateřina (2020): Comparison Of Spring And Summer Clutches Of Great Crested Grebes (Podiceps Cristatus). Acta Zoologica Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae 66 (4): 393-401, DOI: 10.17109/AZH.66.4.393.2020, URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.17109/azh.66.4.393.202