Here are images of a rainbow lorikeet (RBL) with a severely swollen head. It was noticed in the backyard of a carer when the local RBLs came to raid the food from her rehab birds. She caught it from behind and brought it to me for advice. It eats well and flies, etc but obviously to be caught using a towel means its survival chances are reduced and the severity of the lesions would obviously be compromising its ability to survive for much longer, especially if it is becoming more severe. The mostly bilaterally symmetrical lesions mainly affect the head but there are also lesions on the back. The affected skin feels rough but the lesion is spongy.
I have not seen anything like this. Any ideas?
Yes we have seen burrowing mites causing similar lesions. Some lesions often core out and you can crush the material between two slides and examine under the microscope to confirm the diagnosis. We are just trying to find someone to help identify mites from something similar from Victoria. Hope you are well Derek.
Karrie
Thanks Karrie. A mite was suspected by the local veterinarian who administered ivermectin. I dispensed oral ivermectin to repeat weekly to see how it responded. I'll ask her to bring the lorikeet back in to try a crush but the lesions were spongy rather than hard although the skin was tough.
Never seen in domestic birds.They must be caused by specific ectoparasites.
Thank you Arne. In my experience pox lesions have different distributions, consistency and appearance and while common here in magpies, currawongs (see new images), butcher birds, raptors and other native birds, I have not seen pox lesions in rainbow lorikeets.
Mites as suggested Knemidocoptes and pox viruses. I tend to mites. Biopsy and histology. That will be the solution
My top rule-outs would be mite infestation (e.g. Harpirhynchus sp., see http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24597129), avian pox (pox virus infections can take many different forms, though I agree that these do not look nor sound to be pox virus lesions), or a chronic dermatitis of some etiology causing severe, multifocal, caseous lesions (possibly d/t chronic bacterial infection ?? though identifying a primary cause in those cases is often very, very difficult).
I like what others have said - mites, poxvirus, and I would consider sinusitis and otitis. Sinusitis can look like that in chickens from Mycoplasma.
- Badges
- Science topic
- Similar topics
- Biological Science
- Zoology
- Ornithology