Enzootic Psittacosis Amongst Wild Australian Parrots

Abstract

1. Psittacosis infection is enzootic amongst several of the common species of Australian parrots in the wild state. A large proportion of recently caught individuals ofPsephotus haematonotus, Trichoglossus(two species) andLeptolophus hollandicusare infected. In other genera, demonstrable infection is rare, but enlarged non-infective spleens probably indicative of past infection are common.2. The virus strains derived from wild Australian parrots appear to resemble closely those isolated from human and parrot infections in Europe and America.