''Plasmodium hermani'' is a parasite of the genus ''

Plasmodium ''Plasmodium'' is a genus of unicellular eukaryotes that are obligate parasites of vertebrates and insects. The life cycles of ''Plasmodium'' species involve development in a blood-feeding insect host which then injects parasites into a vert ...

'' subgenus ''

Huffia Huffia is a subgenus of the genus ''Plasmodium'' - all of which are parasites. The subgenus was created in 1963 by Corradetti ''et al.''. Species in this subgenus infect bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting th ...

''. As in all ''Plasmodium'' species, ''P. hermani'' has both

vertebrate Vertebrates () comprise all animal taxa within the subphylum Vertebrata () ( chordates with backbones), including all mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, and fish. Vertebrates represent the overwhelming majority of the phylum Chordata, ...

and

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...

hosts. The vertebrate hosts for this parasite are

bird Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...

Description

This species was first described in 1975 by Telford and Forrester in a wild turkey.Telford S.R., Jr. and Forrester D.J. (1975) ''Plasmodium (Huffia) hermani'' ''sp. n.'' from wild turkeys (''Meleagris gallopavo'') in Florida. J. Euk. Microbiol. 22 (3) 324-328

Geographical occurrence

This species is found in

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

, USA.

Vectors

*''

Culex nigripalpus ''Culex nigripalpus'' (Florida SLE mosquito) is a species of medium-sized, dark, blood-feeding mosquito of the family Culicidae. Distribution ''Culex nigripalpus'' has been found to occur in the following countries: Anguilla, Bahamas, Barbad ...

''Forrester DJ, Nayar JK, Foster GW. (1980) ''Culex nigripalpus'': a natural vector of wild turkey malaria (''Plasmodium hermani'') in Florida. J. Wildl. Dis. 16(3):391-394 *''

Culex restuans ''Culex restuans'' is a species of mosquito known to occur in Canada, the United States, Mexico, Guatemala, and Honduras. It is a disease vector for St. Louis encephalitis and West Nile virus. In 2013 West Nile Virus positive specimens were collec ...

'' *''

Culex salinarius ''Culex salinarius'', the unbanded saltmarsh mosquito, is a species of mosquito in the family Culicidae Mosquitoes (or mosquitos) are members of a group of almost 3,600 species of small flies within the family Culicidae (from the Latin ''cule ...

''Nayar JK, Young MD, Forrester DJ. (1981) ''Plasmodium hermani'': experimental transmission by ''Culex salinarius'' and comparison with other susceptible florida mosquitoes. Exp. Parasitol. 51(3):431-437 *'' Wyeomyia vanduzeei'' Note: ''Cx. nigripalpus'' appears to be the main natural vector.

Clinical features and host pathology

This species infects knots (''

Calidris canutus The red knot or just knot (''Calidris canutus'') is a medium-sized shorebird which breeds in tundra and the Arctic Cordillera in the far north of Canada, Europe, and Russia. It is a large member of the ''Calidris'' sandpipers, second only to the ...

''), bobwhites (''

Colinus virginianus The northern bobwhite (''Colinus virginianus''), also known as the Virginia quail or (in its home range) bobwhite quail, is a ground-dwelling bird native to Canada, the United States, Mexico, and Cuba, with introduced populations elsewhere in th ...

'') and turkeys (''

Meleagris gallopavo The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an upland ground bird native to North America, one of two extant species of turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic turkey, which was originally de ...

''). Infection of turkeys causes anaemia, splenomegaly and decreased growth but is not normally fatal.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Plasmodium Hermani Parasites of birds hermani