ArticleiScience2024
Host traits rather than migration and molting strategies explain feather bacterial load in Palearctic passerines.
Article in iScience, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
1 citing paper in PubMed.
- Adaptive Features of the Avian Integument: A Comparative Study of the Laughing Dove, Quail, Muscovy Duck, With Emphasis on the Preen Gland Secretions and Associated Microbial Communities.Journal of experimental zoology. Part A, Ecological and integrative physiology · 2026Article
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Authors and funding
8 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Feather bacterial load affects key avian life-history traits such as plumage condition, innate immunity, and reproductive success. Investigating the interplay between life-history traits and feather microbial load is critical for understanding mechanisms of host-microbiome interactions. We hypothesize that spatiotemporal variation associated with migration and molting, body size affecting colonizable body surface area, and preening intensity could shape feather bacterial load. Integrating 16S rDNA-qPCR and flow cytometry, we examined total and viable bacterial loads in the feathers of 316 individuals of 24 Palearctic passerine species. We found that viable bacterial load in feathers was lower in larger species and higher in residents compared to migrants. In contrast, total bacterial load was not explained by any of the life-history traits but varied considerably among species, sampling sites, and years. By pinpointing main drivers of bacterial loads on avian body surfaces, we identify key mechanisms shaping host-microbiome interactions and open alternative research directions.
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