This review describes the current research status regarding implementation of predatory fungi in biological control approach bird gastrointestinal (GI) parasitosis. The main GI parasites Galliformes (e.g., broilers, layers, peacocks, pheasants) and Ratites ostriches, emus, rheas) are addressed, as well their impact on farms, zoos, private collections. characteristics biocontrol with briefly des...

The phylogenetic relationships of species in the Phasianidae, Order Galliformes, are the object of intensive study. However, convergent morphological evolution and rapid species radiation result in much ambiguity in the group. Further, matrilineal (mtDNA) genealogies conflict with trees based on nuclear DNA retrotransposable elements. Herein, we analyze 39 nearly complete mitochondrial genomes ...

Most of the temperate species are expected to have moved to lower altitudes during the glacial periods of the Quaternary. Here we tested this hypothesis in a cold-tolerant avian species Tibetan snowcock (Tetraogallus tibetanus) using two segments of mitochondrial gene (a 705bp Cytochrome-b; abbrev. Cyt-b and an 854 bp Control Region; abbrev. CR) and eight microsatellite loci by characterizing p...

Glycoproteins containing Galalpha1-4Gal (galabiose) had been rarely found in vertebrates, except in a few species of birds and amphibians. We had previously reported that pigeon (Columba livia) egg white and serum glycoproteins are rich in N-glycans with Galalpha1-4Gal at nonreducing termini. To investigate the origin of Galalpha1-4Gal expression in avian evolution, we examined the presence of ...

We sequenced 2690 nucleotides of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) including the entire control region (CR), partial 12S and 16S ribosomal RNAs, NADH dehydrogenase subunit 2, and cytochrome b genes from representatives of all the 17 living species of grouse and ptarmigan (Aves; Galliformes; subfamily Tetraoninae). Substitution rates and phylogenetic signals were variable among genes, with the CR being ...

The phylogeny of the Phasianidae (pheasants, partridges, and allies) has been studied extensively. However, these studies have largely ignored three enigmatic genera because of scarce DNA source material and limited overlapping phylogenetic data: blood pheasants (Ithaginis), snow partridges (Lerwa), and long-billed partridges (Rhizothera). Thus, phylogenetic positions of these three genera rema...

The Cracidae is one of the most endangered and distinctive bird families in the Neotropics, yet the higher relationships among taxa remain uncertain. The molecular phylogeny of its 11 genera was inferred using 10,678 analyzable sites (5,412 from seven different mitochondrial segments and 5,266 sites from four nuclear genes). We performed combinability tests to check conflicts in phylogenetic si...