0000000000933717
AUTHOR
Joaquín Muñoz
Low prevalence of blood parasites in a long-distance migratory raptor: the importance of the host habitat
Background The low prevalence of blood parasites in some bird species may be related to the habitats they frequent, the inexistence of the right host-parasite assemblage or the immunological capacity of the host. Here, we assess the parasite load of breeding populations of Eleonora's falcon (Falco eleonorae), a medium-sized long-distance migratory raptor that breeds on small isolated islets throughout the Mediterranean basin and overwinters in inland Madagascar. Methods We examined the prevalence and genetic diversity of the blood parasites belonging to the genera Plasmodium, Haemoproteus and Leucocytozoon in Eleonora's falcon nestlings from five colonies and in adults from two colonies fro…
Application of an inexpensive and high-throughput genomic DNA extraction method for the molecular ecology of zooplanktonic diapausing eggs
We describe the application of a simple, low-cost, and effective method of DNA extraction (hot sodium hydroxide and Tris, HotSHOT) to the diapausing propagules of continental aquatic invertebrates for its use in PCR amplification. We illustrate the use of the technique in cladocerans, rotifers, anostracans, notostracans, and copepod diapausing eggs. We compare the performance of the HotSHOT technique to the currently most widely used method for DNA extraction of zooplankton eggs and individuals, the chelating resin (or Chelex) technique. The HotSHOT technique overcomes several of the problems posed by Chelex and permits easy optimization for its use with 96-well plates for high-throughput D…