High prevalence of Trichomonas gallinae in domestic pigeons (Columba livia domestica) in subtropical southern China

Domestic pigeon (Columba livia domestica) as the main host of Trichomonas gallinae plays an important role in the spread of T. gallinae, but limited information about the prevalence of T. gallinae in domestic pigeons in China is available. In the present investigation, a total of 319 domestic pigeons on seven commercial farms in Guangdong Province, Southern China were examined microscopically in freshly prepared wet mount between July 2009 and January 2010. T. gallinae was observed in 108 out of 319 pigeons, giving an overall prevalence of 33.9%. Among these flocks in this survey, the positivity in different farms varied ranging from 23.7 to 45.1% with no significant difference (chi(2) = 5.602, P = 0.469). However, significant difference in the prevalence of pigeons with different ages was observed (chi(2) = 11.59, P = 0.003). The results of the present survey revealed high prevalence of T. gallinae infection in pigeons, and improved integrated strategies should be taken to control the spread of T. gallinae infection in pigeons in China.