Rescatando al Gavilán de la Española (Buteo ridgwayi) del camino hacia la extinción: desarrollo de técnicas de control de mediano y largo plazo para mitigar el impacto de Philornis spp.

QUIROGA, M.

Boise

Conferencia; Neotropical Raptor Network Conference; 2020

The Peregrine Fund

Philornis flies Meinert (Diptera: Muscidae) have been documented parasitizing over 250 bird species, some of which are endemic species threatened with extinction. Philornis parasitism is hypothesized to affect nestlings disproportionately more than adult birds because limited mobility and exposed skin of nestlings increase their vulnerability to parasitism. We used a comprehensiveliterature review and our recent fieldwork in the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Grenada to challenge the idea that parasitism by subcutaneous Philornis species is a phenomenon primarily found in nestlings, a fact that has not been quantified to date. Of the 265 reviewed publications, 125 (49%) reported incidences of parasitism by subcutaneous Philornis, but only 12 included the sampling of adult breeding birds. Nine of these publications (75%) reported Philornis parasitism in adults of ten bird species. During fieldwork in the Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Grenada, we documented 14 instances of parasitism of adult birds of seven avian species. From literature review and fieldwork, adults of at least fifteen bird species across 12 families and four orders of birds were parasitized by at least five Philornis species. In both the published literature and fieldwork,incidences of parasitism of adult birds occurred predominantly in females and was frequently associated with incubation. Although our findings indicate that Philornis parasitism of adult birds is more common than widely presumed, parasite prevalence is still greater in nestlings. In the future, we recommend surveys of adult birds to better understand host-Philornis relationships across life stages. This information may be essential for the development of effective control measures ofPhilornis to ensure the long-term protection of bird species of conservation concern.