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At least 181 records · Page 10Linked to original sources
PubMed1994

ENERGY SAVINGS IN FORMATION FLIGHT OF PINK-FOOTED GEESE

Fifty-four skeins of pink-footed geese (Anser brachyrhynchus) were photographed from directly underneath to eliminate the effects of perspective distortion, and the wing-tip spacings (the distance between adjacent birds' wing tips perpendicular to the flight path at maximum wingspan) and depths (the distance between adjacent birds' body centres parallel to the flight path) were measured at the same time as local wind speeds. The photographs were used to test for savings in induced power from wing positioning relative to the predicted positions of vortices generated by other wings, using a theoretical model. The mean wing-tip spacing corresponded to a saving in induced power of 14 %, less than one-third of the maximum possible. The saving in total power might be as low as 2.4 %. The high variation in wing-tip spacing suggests that pink-footed geese found difficulty maintaining position and thus adopted a strategy of flying outboard of the optimal position that maximises savings. This may minimise the risk of straying into a zone where savings are negative. There was a significant correlation between depth and wing-tip spacing, supporting an alternative communication hypothesis, whereby the birds position themselves to obtain maximum information on their neighbour's position. In high winds, there was little change in wing-tip spacing variation but a decrease in depth variation, suggesting a shift towards more regularly spaced skeins.

Journal Article↗
PubMed1996

[Water-borne campylobacter infection--probably caused by pink-footed geese. Two outbreaks in Nord-Trøndelag, Stjørtdal in 1994 and Verdal in 1995].

The authors describe two water-borne outbreaks of Campylobacter gastroenteritis that occurred in central Norway in 1994 and 1995. The epidemics were probably caused by contamination of drinking water by the stools of Pink-footed geese on the way from Svalbard to Germany-Netherlands. Campylobacter jejuni from the stools of the geese was transmitted to the population via untreated drinking water, causing disease in 50% of the population. About 1,000 persons suffered from gastroenteritis caused by contaminated drinking water in these two epidemics.

Bacteriological Techniques↗
PubMed2001

Excreted metabolites of gonadal steroid hormones and corticosterone in greylag geese (Anser anser) from hatching to fledging.

Steroid hormones play major roles in the organization of the phenotype and in the activation of behavior. From hatching to fledging, they are involved in growth, development, and learning. We investigated the relationship between the ontogenetic patterns of steroid hormones and the sexual and social development of greylag goslings (Anser anser). Two groups of individually marked goslings (n = 10/5) were hand-raised under near-field conditions. 17beta-OH-androgen (AM), estrogen (EM), and corticosterone (BM) immunoreactive metabolites were measured noninvasively by enzyme immunoassay of individual fecal samples. Feces were regularly sampled from hatching to fledging. All excreted steroids were found to peak at hatching and to decrease thereafter. Gonadal steroids fluctuated more than BM, which remained at low levels throughout ontogeny after a slow decrease during the first 20 days. The pattern of BM is discussed in relation to learning processes (i.e., filial imprinting) and social stress. It is suggested that high initial BM may constrain energy allocation to growth. AM increased around the age of 20 days, when the feathers start growing, and later, together with EM, at the age of 40 days. These elevated values of gonadal steroids are discussed in relation to the sensitive phase of sexual imprinting. Females show higher EM levels than males throughout ontogeny. Furthermore, the ratio of excreted estrogen to androgen (EM/AM) of females before fledging correlates with the number of hatched and fledged goslings in their first years of reproduction. In conclusion, our data suggest a role for steroid hormones in the modulation of behavioral and morphological development in the precocial greylag geese, in agreement with the organizational-activational hypothesis.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1999

A new avian hepadnavirus infecting snow geese (Anser caerulescens) produces a significant fraction of virions containing single-stranded DNA.

We describe the identification and functional analysis of an evolutionary distinct new avian hepadnavirus. Infection of snow geese (Anser caerulescens) with a duck hepatitis B virus (DHBV)-related virus, designated SGHBV, was demonstrated by detection of envelope proteins in sera with anti-DHBV preS and S antibodies. Comparative sequence analysis of the PCR-amplified SGHBV genomes revealed unique SGHBV sequence features compared with other avian hepadnaviruses. Unlike DHBV, SGHBV shows an open reading frame in an analogous position to orthohepadnavirus X genes. Four of five cloned genomes were competent in replication, gene expression, and virus particle secretion in chicken hepatoma cells. Primary duck hepatocytes were permissive for infection with SGHBV, suggesting a similar or identical host range. SGHBV was found to secrete a significant fraction of virion-like particles containing single-stranded viral DNA. This was observed both in cell culture medium of SGHBV DNA-transfected LMH cells and in viremic sera of several birds, suggesting that it is a stable trait of SGHBV. Taken together, SGHBV has several unique features that expand the knowledge of the functional and evolutionary diversity of hepadnaviruses and offers new experimental opportunities for studies on the life cycle of hepadnaviruses.

Amino Acid Sequence↗
PubMed1986

Ambient temperature and ketone body plasma concentration in fasting geese.

The effect on ketonemia of alternate exposure to ambient temperatures (Ta) of 25 and 5 degrees C was investigated in fasting geese. Three experimental birds were compared to three controls continuously exposed to 25 degrees C Ta while fasting. During the first 9 days of fasting, when both groups were exposed to 25 degrees C, plasma concentration of beta-hydroxybutyrate (beta-OHB) increased similarly in both, from 0.10 +/- 0.02 to 6.62 +/- 0.71 mmol X L-1. It later plateaued at 8-9 mmol X L-1 in the control birds. When the experimental birds were exposed to 5 degrees C Ta between the 9th and 15th day of the fast, it increased further during the first 24 h but thereafter decreased of 57%, from 8.62 +/- 1.56 to 3.73 +/- 1.24 mmol X L-1. This decrease was reversed within the 6 days of return to 25 degrees C Ta. In both groups, plasma acetoacetate (AcAc) concentration remained very low during the fast: 51 +/- 1 mumol X L-1. This reversible cold-induced effect on ketonemia may be used for investigating the possible role of ketone bodies in protein sparing during fasting.

3-Hydroxybutyric Acid↗
PubMed1987

Uric acid and urea in relation to protein catabolism in long-term fasting geese.

Five ganders were subjected to an experimental fast comparable to that which spontaneously occurs during breeding in domestic geese, and during migration and breeding in various wild birds. Plasma uric acid and urea concentrations, and their excretion as a proportion of total nitrogen excretion, were studied in relation to daily change in body mass per unit body mass, mg/mdt. This variable has previously been found to reflect changes in protein catabolism over the three phases of fast: I, dm/mdt and protein utilization both decrease; II, they are maintained at a low value; and III, they increase. In the fed state, daily total nitrogen excretion was 5 gN X 24 h-1; uric acid, ammonia and urea accounted for 51, 15 and 5% respectively. The high remaining proportion of excreted nitrogen (29%), after subtraction of uric acid-N, ammonia-N and urea-N to total nitrogen, accords with the literature. During fasting, the changes in daily excretion of uric acid, urea, ammonia and total nitrogen followed a pattern essentially similar to that for dm/mdt. Uric acid accounted for a progressively increasing fraction of total nitrogen, up to 76% at the end of phase III, while urea remained at a constant 5%. Plasma concentrations of both uric acid and urea followed similar trends during the fast, in particular both increasing during phase III, i.e. when there was a rise in nitrogen excretion. This suggests they could be used as an index in field investigations, to determine whether birds which naturally fast in connection with specific activities have entered into the situation where proteins are no longer spared.

Ammonia↗
PubMed1976

Assortative mating in lesser snow geese (Anser caerulescens).

Assortative mating occurs in the dimorphic lesser snow geese in the wild. Mixed matings between the blue and white phases are much less frequent than would be expected by chance. Evidence from marked birds in field conditions indicated that mate choice was correlated with familial color. Birds from white families usually chose white mates, birds from blue families usually chose blue mates, and birds from mixed families chose mates of either color. Similar results were obtained under captive conditions when offspring from foster families with particular parental and offspring color combinations were allowed to choose mates. Both parental color and sibling color appeared to influence mate choice. The bird's own color did not appear to be important in mate choice in either field or experimental conditions, and in those cases where male and female parents differed in color neither parental color was more influential than the other in determining offspring mate choice. The results provide the first evidence, to our knowledge, that mate selection based on familial appearance operates intraspecifically in the wild.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

Infectivity of Blastocystis isolates from chickens, quails and geese in chickens.

The infectivity of six Blastocystis isolates obtained from two domestic chickens, two Japanese quails and two domestic geese, were examined in 1-week-old male chicks. All six isolates were able to infect the chicks via the intracecal inoculation of 1x10(6) cells of cultured organisms. Since the infected chicks discharged many cysts in their feces, the infectivity of the concentrated cysts in chicks was compared among three isolates from different bird species. The CK86-1 and QQ93-3 isolates, which were obtained from a chicken and a quail, respectively, were successfully infected in chicks by orally inoculating with 1x10(2)-1x10(6) cysts. On the other hand, the AC03-1 isolate from a goose required more cysts to infect the chicks, from 1x10(3) cysts to 1x10(6) cysts. In addition, when an uninfected normal chick was housed with five experimentally inoculated chicks with cysts of the QQ93-3 isolate, the normal chick became infected, indicating the fecal-oral transmission of the cyst form among the birds. These results show that the transmission of Blastocystis infection occurs easily between the same or different bird species. Therefore, the proposal of new Blastocystis species on the basis of different avian host species is problematic.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Genomic sequence of an isolate of Newcastle disease virus isolated from an outbreak in geese: a novel six nucleotide insertion in the non-coding region of the nucleoprotein gene. Brief Report.

We have completely sequenced the genome of an isolate of Newcastle disease virus (NDV) obtained following an outbreak in geese. The genomic sequence consists of 15192 nt, which is six nt longer than the published full length genome of the NDV strains La Sota, B1, Clone-30, Beaudette C and HB V4. The six nt insertion was located in the non-coding region of the nucleoprotein (NP) gene between nt 1646 and nt 1647 of the NDV genome (numbered according to the genomic sequence of the La Sota strain). An additional 22 NDV strains were searched for the existence of this six nt insertion. NDVs in genotypes VI, VII, VIII and IX had this insertion while NDV's in genotypes I, II, III, IV, and V did not. The significance of this insertion in NDV evolution is discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Seasonal changes in follicle-stimulating hormone in a breeding population of barheaded geese, Anser indicus.

Changes in the plasma titers of follicle-stimulating hormone were investigated in a free-living population of barheaded geese over the whole year. Adult males had pronounced seasonal changes from prebreeding levels of approximately equal to 20 ng/ml to a peak in the breeding season of about 300 ng/ml. Changes in females were only slight. An increase from nondetectable, approximately equal to 20 ng/ml to a mean of 32.2 ng/ml before egg-laying was found. The data are discussed with regard to the literature on free-living species and the previously published data on LH and testosterone levels in the same birds.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Effects of altering dead space volume on respiration and air sac gases in geese.

Dead space volume (VD) was altered in spontaneously breathing, anesthetized geese from values far above (about 115 ml) to those far below (about 3 ml) the normal VD (approximately 40 ml). Respiratory gases were measured in cranial (CrS) and caudal air sacs (CdS) and in blood. The major findings were as follows: Ventilation increased linearly with VD, by increases in tidal volume (VT) at constant breathing rate (fresp); effective parabronchial ventilation, (VT-VD) X fresp, remained constant and so did arterial blood gases. No changes occurred in CrS gas composition. CdS PCO2 declined with decreasing VD, and the respiratory exchange ratio increased, reaching values above unity at the lowest VD. The gas composition in CrS, and particularly its relation to end-expired gas composition, is in agreement with current models of the gas flow pattern in the avian lung. The PCO2 values in CdS are higher than expected by simple models, e.g. by dead space re-inhalation. Neopulmonic gas exchange and incomplete gas mixing are suggested to contribute significantly to the gas composition of CdS.

Air Sacs↗
PubMed1991

Pressure profiles show features essential to aerodynamic valving in geese.

Inspiratory airflow in the avian lung completely bypasses the most cranial secondary bronchi (the ventrobronchi), and instead enters bronchi arising more caudally (the dorsobronchi). Dotterweich (1936) proposed that 'aerodynamic valves' prevented entry into the ventrobronchi. We have recently provided evidence that inspiratory aerodynamic valving in avian lungs depends on convective inertia in the primary bronchus (Banzett et al., 1987). Theoretical and physical models (Butler et al., 1988; Wang et al., 1988) showed that convective inertia could effect valving, but the effectiveness of valving at resting flows was less than that observed in the bird. This leads us to hypothesize that a segment of the primary bronchus is constricted, accelerating the gas and enhancing the convective inertia. To test this hypothesis in the present work we measured pressures throughout the airways and air sacs in anesthetized, pump-ventilated geese at different flow rates and gas densities. Our data show: (1) there is a large pressure drop in the primary bronchus close to the ventrobronchial junction, indicating the presence of a constriction; (2) this pressure drop increases with gas density and flow; (3) the convective inertia at this site is more than 10 times downstream opposing pressures. We conclude that the primary bronchus just cranial to the first ventrobronchus forms a constriction which accelerates inspired air. Furthermore, we conclude that the convective inertia of gas leaving this segment is sufficient to achieve inspiratory valving.

Animals↗
PubMed1984

Lateral hypothalamic relations with medial hypothalamus and limbic areas in geese.

Spontaneous unit activity was recorded in the posteromedial hypothalamic (PMH) and preventricular magnocellular (PVM) nuclei, septal area (S) and hippocampal formation (Hp). Modifications of cellular firing induced by lateral hypothalamic area (LHA) stimulation were examined. Both thiopental anaesthetized and chronic non anaesthetized geese were used. Thiopental appeared to significantly decrease the spontaneous discharge frequency of PMH neurons, and to block both orthodromic and antidromic activations elicited by LHA stimulation. The results indicated that LHA has a predominantly inhibitory influence on PMH as well as on PVM and septal area. The study of antidromic evoked responses in the four areas investigated (PMH, PVM, S, Hp) demonstrated that these structures in turn exert a feed-back control onto LHA. These results are compared with previous electrophysiological, anatomical and behavioral feeding data and an attempt is made to establish some comparisons between birds and mammals.

Animals↗
PubMed2005

A hypothesis: the conjunction of soldiers, gas, pigs, ducks, geese and horses in northern France during the Great War provided the conditions for the emergence of the "Spanish" influenza pandemic of 1918-1919.

The Great Influenza Pandemic of 1918-1919 was a cataclysmic outbreak of infection wherein over 50 million people died worldwide within 18 months. The question of the origin is important because most influenza surveillance at present is focussed on S.E. Asia. Two later pandemic viruses in 1957 and 1968 arose in this region. However we present evidence that early outbreaks of a new disease with rapid onset and spreadability, high mortality in young soldiers in the British base camp at Etaples in Northern France in the winter of 1917 is, at least to date, the most likely focus of origin of the pandemic. Pathologists working at Etaples and Aldershot barracks later agreed that these early outbreaks in army camps were the same disease as the infection wave of influenza in 1918. The Etaples camp had the necessary mixture of factors for emergence of pandemic influenza including overcrowding (with 100,000 soldiers daily changing), live pigs, and nearby live geese, duck and chicken markets, horses and an additional factor 24 gases (some of them mutagenic) used in large 100 ton quantities to contaminate soldiers and the landscape. The final trigger for the ensuing pandemic was the return of millions of soldiers to their homelands around the entire world in the autumn of 1918.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Excreted corticosterone metabolites co-vary with ambient temperature and air pressure in male Greylag geese (Anser anser).

In many species, seasonal activities such as reproduction or migration need to be fine-tuned with weather conditions. Air pressure and temperature changes are the best parameters for such conditions. Adapting to climatic changes invariably involves physiological and behavioral reactions associated with the adrenals. In the present study, we investigated the effects of ambient temperature and air pressure on excreted immuno-reactive metabolites of corticosterone (BM) and androgens (AM). Focal individuals were 14 paired male greylag geese (Anser anser) from a semi-tame, unrestrained flock. BM and AM were measured in individual fecal samples over 25 days in November and December. Two different ACTH-validated assays were used for the assessment of BM: the first one cross-reacting with 11beta,21-diol-20-one structures ("old assay") and the second one with 5beta,3alpha,11beta-diol structures ("new assay"). With the "new assay," BM correlated negatively with the minimum ambient temperature of the night before, which may reflect corticosterone involvement in thermoregulation. BM also correlated positively with the minimum air pressure of the previous afternoon, which supports the value of air pressure for predicting weather conditions. Together, these reactions suggest a role of the adrenals in responding behaviorally and physiologically to changes in weather. Preliminary analysis indicated a higher sensitivity to the excreted glucocorticosteroid metabolites in the "new assay." As expected for outside the mating season, no relationships were found between excreted AM and the weather parameters considered. The gradual changes in BM excretion in parallel with weather conditions may be part of the fine-tuning of physiology and behavior by environmental clues.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗
PubMed1979

Blood enzyme activities in different breeds of geese.

1. Enzyme activities were studied in blood plasma from Rhenish, Italian, Landes and Masseubian geese. 2. Strains used for liver production (Landes, Masseubian) showed higher activities of aspartate transaminase (AST) [EC 2.6.1.1], alanine transaminase (ALT) [EC 2.6.1.2] and fructose aldolase (FRA) [EC 4.1.2.13] while breeds with high egg production (Rhenish, Italian) had higher activities of both alkaline phosphatase (ALP) [EC 3.1.3.1] and acid phosphatase (ACP) [EC 3.1.3.2]

Alanine Transaminase↗
PubMed1985

Effects of diets of varying energy concentrations on the growth and carcase composition of geese.

Two hundred and eighty eight-d-old goslings were allocated at random to one of 18 groups, each group comprising 8 of each sex. Three starter and three grower diets (both 11, 12, 13 MJ AME/kg) were fed and were combined in a factorial design to give 9 treatments. The starter diets were given for 4 weeks and the grower diets from weeks 5 to 9 inclusive. Body weight was unaffected by treatment, but the males were significantly heavier than the females. Food intake declined significantly as the dietary energy concentration increased. The efficiency of food utilisation of birds fed on the starter diet with the lowest energy concentration was significantly less than that of birds fed on the other diets. Birds fed on the grower diet with the highest energy concentration gave significantly better FCE than those fed on the other diets. There was no evidence to suggest that the treatments had any significant effect on carcase components and chemical composition of the geese. Oleic acid was significantly depressed and linoleic acid concentration increased as the energy concentration of the diets increased. However, this may reflect the higher fat concentrations in the diets with the higher energy concentrations.

Animal Feed↗
PubMed1988

Growth and development of Bohemian geese (Anser anser).

1. One hundred and twenty geese were slaughtered in groups of 10 at weekly intervals from 1-d-old until 71 d and also at 114 d and were subjected to carcase analysis. 2. The reduction in the proportion of low-value parts of the body in the period from the first to 114th d after hatching was 16.4 and 17.3% for males and females, respectively. 3. The relative proportion of weight of legs declined both with age and with body weight increase. It was described by a linear function in males and by a power function in females. 4. The relative proportion of wing weight increased from 1.2 and 1.3% on the first day after hatching in males and females, respectively, to 16.6% at the age of 50 d, and 15.2% at the age of 43 d in males and females, respectively.

Aging↗