The psittacine beak and feather disease (PBFD) is a globally widespread infectious bird disease that mainly affects species within the Order Psittaciformes (parrots and allies). The disease is caused by an avian circovirus (the beak and feather disease virus, BFDV), which is highly infectious and...

Fencing, including electric fencing, is widely used across South Africa for livestock and game ranching practices. Leopard tortoises (Stigmochelys pardalis) are particularly prone to being killed by electric fences, but no published studies have assessed the impact of fence structure or quantified ...

The objective of the study was to record the tick species collected from three species of tortoise, each in a different province of South Africa. Ticks were collected from leopard tortoises, Stigmochyles pardalis, in the southern region of the Kruger National Park, Mpumalanga province; from...

Background: Illegal trade in rare wildlife species is a major threat to many parrot species around the world. Wildlife forensics plays an important role in the preservation of endangered or threatened wildlife species. Identification of illegally harvested or traded animals through DNA techniques...

Background: Pet birds are housed and reared exclusively for ornamental use. These include psittaciformes (parrots, parakeets, budgerigars, love birds) and passeriformes (e.g. canaries, finches, sparrows, also called songbirds). E. coli is a Gram negative bacterium. In birds, it is called Avian...

Unsustainable exploitation of the wild Grey Parrot is a complex and challenging phenomenon for governments and international organizations to tackle. The need to reverse the negative impacts of exploitation on the Grey Parrot population and to conserve it for future generations formed the basis of...

BACKGROUND: Agama agama lizards are the most populous species of lizard in developing countries of African including Nigeria. These lizards are insectivores; they feed on insects and other arthropods, which may predispose them to different gastrointestinal parasitic infections, some of which are of ...

In South Africa, the role of reptilian ticks in the transmission of haemoparasites is lacking, in part, due to limited information on tick diversity and their associated haemoparasites. The aim of this research was to identify tick species parasitizing reptiles and to molecularly screen these...

Although diverse tick-borne pathogens (TBPs) are endemic to East Africa, with recognized impact on human and livestock health, their diversity and specific interactions with tick and vertebrate host species remain poorly understood in the region. In particular, the role of reptiles in TBP...

A microbiome is defined as a complex collection of microorganisms and their genetic material. Studies regarding gut microbiomes of different animals have provided ecological and evolutionary information showing a strong link between health and disease. Very few studies have compared the gut...