Ciconiiformes

Question 1

5 families of Order Ciconiiformes?

Answer 1

o	Ciconiformes: 5 families, 100+ spp
	Ardeidae (herons, bitterns, egrets)
	Balaenicipitidae (shoebills)
	Ciconiidae (storks)
	Scopidae (happerkops)
	Threskionithidae (ibises and spoonbills)

Question 2

What allows for S-shaped neck during heron flight?

Answer 2

Modified 6th cervical vertebrae

Question 3

Differences between herons and storks

Answer 3

■ Herons have powder down
■ Not storks, ibis, spoonbills
■ Young herons single down coat, young storks have 2 down coats
■ Storks lack syrinx muscles, most are mute
● Bill clattering for communication.
● Openbill storks have distinct separation between rhampotheca and gnathotheca, other storks have variably tapered long beaks.
■ Storks are largest ciconiiformes

Question 4

Unique features of Ciconiiformes

Answer 4

Terio

o Webbed feet, long necks, extensive down, extensive pneumatization of bones incl. phalanges
o No syringeal musculature in storks
o Swans & cranes have elongated folded tracheas within the keel bone
o Screamers have subq air sacs
o Herons have a modified 6th vertebrae for folding necks in fight
o Paired ceca, except some Ciconiiformes have single secum
o Normal for lymphoid nodules to be histologically prominent
o Cecal tonsils are anular band in waterfowl
o Peking duck has unique postnatal growth and regression of thymus and bursa of Fabricius
o Salt glands normal

Crista ventralis important for intubation

Question 5

Differences in feeding and diet for different stork spp?

Answer 5

Feeding morphology, strategy, and digestion
• All storks are exclusively carnivorous (fish, crustaceans, amphibians, small reptiles)
• Prey detection and capture based on touch rather than vision
• Long, tapered, bill with sensitive portions at the tip
• Anastomus species share unique bill with distinct opening apparent btwn the two mandibles useful for cracking snail shells
• Ciconia species bills are suited to general foraging habits (“generalists”)
• Epippiorhynchys and Jabiru feed mostly on fish of up to 500g and vert/invert aquatic species; walk rapidly through shallow water to disturb prey then jab with bill to catch
• Leptoptilos species have largest bills; 2 species (Marabou and Greater Adjutant storks); notable scavengers, but also serious predators; large bones can make up a portion of the diet
• Absolute nutrient values vary across prey types; animal tissues readily digestible; highly digestible soft tissues separated from indigestible components

Question 6

Diet of the openbill stork?

Answer 6

o Openbill storks feed on FW snails (Pilia spp) and bivalve mollusks almost exclusively.

Question 7

Nutritional recommendations for stork chick development?

Answer 7

Nutrient recommendations
• Specific studies of digestive physiology not reported
• Likely share some unique enzyme systems of other carnivores (e.g. felids)
• Nutrient requirements should be extrapolated as a combo of avian and felid models
• Crude protein not less than 24% DM (up to 40% during growth)
• Meat-based diets not likely to limit essential AA
• Whole vertebrate prey and properly supplemented meat-based diets recommended
• Prevent excess Vitamin A (can interfere with other fat soluble vitamin absorption)
• Dietary Vitamin D and UVB access should be provided
• Whole vertebrate prey (rodents, rabbits, poultry, fish, amphibians, reptiles), properly supplemented meat, occasional invertebrate prey (crayfish, insects)
• Frogs diet ingredient in nature, not sustainably harvested for applied feeding programs
• 3.5 g of calcium (carbonate and phosphate) supplied to lesser adjutant stork chicks daily during rapid growth prevented deficiency problems
• Others: 0.01 g Ca carbonate/100 g food or 3 parts skinned/chopped mouse:1 part chopped fish (equal parts trout and smelt)
Conclusion
• Calcium supplementation recommended for normal chick development
• Likely also other nutrients that are as important
• Adult body condition also affects chick health/breeding success
• Knowledge of stork dietary requirements remains poor

Question 8

What drug toxicity has been reported in painted storks?

Answer 8

Fenbendezole - BM hypoplasia and intestinal crypt cell necrosis

Also in marabou storks 60 mg/kg

Caution advised in Ciconiiformes

Question 9

Which bone is the best sample for bone marrow to dx starvation in ciconiiformes, can be used for autolyzed and scavenged carcasses?

Answer 9

Ulnar bone

Question 10

Strategies for control of disseminated visceral coccidiosis in sandhill and whooping cranes?

Answer 10

• Disseminated visceral coccidiosis
  o Eimeria in sandhill and whooping cranes
  o Widespread dissemination of developmental coccidian stages extraintestinally
  o Spreads once enters blood or lymphatics – GI, lung, air sacs, trachea, nares
  o Chicks most susceptible
   Granulomatous pneumonia, tracheitis, hepatitis, myocarditis, splenitis, enteritis
   Experimental infections in sandhill crane chicks MM usually at peak of merogony (days 9-11).
  o Life cycle completed in GI and resp tracts
  o Occurs in free-ranging individuals, bigger issue in captivity
  o Worse in close confinement
  o Extraintestinal infections significant issue in captivity
  o Control – rotate exhibits, survey for parasites if high load might want to treat, separate by age
  o Tx – Monensin is a good coccidiostat, acts against intraluminal stages
   99ppm in feed throughout the year or for 2 months before and 2 months after chick rearing season.

Question 11

Nematode that perforates the ventriculus of Ciconiiformes, results in hemorrhage and bacterial peritonitis.

Answer 11

• Eustrongylides ignotus (nematode)
  ● Common in fish-eating birds (GBH, great egrets, snowy egrets).
  ○ Larvae perforate the ventriculus, resultant hemorrhage and bacterial peritonitis that can progress to fibrous peritonitis and adhesions.
  ● Mortality can be individual or epizootics in wading birds
  ● Die of sepsis b/c nematodes penetrate GI

Question 12

Spaghetti-like masses of worms within the floor of the mouth in herons.

Answer 12

Avioserpens spp

Question 13

What are two spp that have pink plasma normally (not hemolysis)

Answer 13

Spoonbills, scarlet ibises

Question 14

Causes of MBD in spoonbills?

Conversion of provitamin D3 to calcitriol (active form)?

Answer 14

Woodhouse, S. J., & Rick, M. (2016). The effect of UVB radiation on serum vitamin D and ionized calcium in the African spoonbill (Platalea alba). Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine, 47(2), 447-456.

• Provision of a UVB light source to captive African spoonbills maintained indoors during the winter months can increase 25-OHD and iCa to levels equivalent to those seen in the summer months, when birds have unrestricted access to natural sunlight
• Causes of MBD:
o diets deficient in vitamin D, Ca, or both
o lack of exposure to UVB light
o inappropriate Ca:P ratio in diet
o diet with form of vitamin D unable to be utilized by the species
• 21 birds total in study, ages 1 month to 28yr
o measured 25-OHD, iCa, and PTH concentrations
 PTH – undetectable in all birds – assay did not work
o Pretreatment – some bird were affected by MBD at this time
 Blood taken from affected chicks and 3 breeding pairs
 Low iCa and low 25-OHD
o Summer period (natural sunlight)
 Blood collected from same birds aside from affected chicks
 Significantly higher 25-OHD and iCa
o Winter treatment year 1 – UVB exposure
 Blood taken from summer cohort and 5 additional adults
 25-OHD and iCa significantly higher than pre-treatment
 25-OHD similar to summer levels but iCa remained lower than summer levels
o Winter treatment year 2 – UVB output increased
 Blood taken from winter treatment year 1 cohort and 4 more birds
 25-OHD and iCa similar to summer cohort and significantly higher than pre-treatment winter group
• Skin contains provitamin D3 (7dehydrocholesterol)  exposed to UVB  metabolized into previtamin D3  vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol)  enters blood and metabolized into 25-OHD in the liver  travels on D binding proteins to kidney  converted to calcitriol (1,25-OHD, active form of vitamin D)
o Vitamin D - increase Ca absorption in small intestine
 essential for normal chick embryonic development
 facilitates transfer of Ca from egg shell into developing embryo
 deposited into the egg yolk by the hen
• Natural habitat may play a role in need for dietary vitamin D vs UVB
o Birds in areas with abundant sunlight may rely more on UVB than dietary vitamin D for calcium absorption
• UVB light may also effect vision and behavior in some species
• Chicken leg skin contains substantially more provitamin D3 than skin on dorsum
o whole-body exposure to UVB results in production of previtamin D3 in leg and foot skin, but not in dorsal skin
• Dietary vitamin D3 supplementation might not be adequate to maintain appropriate vitamin D and Ca in spoonbills
• Concerns
o Lack of reference values for this species

Question 15

Malibou storks raised with and without UVB light - outcome?

Answer 15

Schaftenaar, W., & van Leeuwen, J. P. (2015). The influence of ultraviolet-B radiation on the growth of marabou stork (Leptoptilos crumeniferus) nestlings in relation to plasma calcium, phosphorus, and vitamin D 3 concentrations. Journal of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine, 682-690.

• Maribou storks raised with and without UVB light – birds without UVB developed MBD
• Maribou storks receiving UVB supplementation had higher plasma vitamin D levels than did those without UVB supplementation
• Diet + UVB = sufficient to prevent MBD and allows normal growth